The Fifth Marauder
by PurpleSailorSaturn7
Summary: The guys try to become Animagi, but one girl stands in their way. *CHAPTER 24 UP!!!* Shampoo jumps off the roof (there is a motif behind that), Narcissa gets hit with a lunch tray, and Meilin has dinner with Sirius.
1. Part 1: The Marauders Chapter 1: Sirius ...

Ok, copyright . . . Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the "Bring It On" soundtrack and "Blessed Union of Souls." The characters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to me. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/quoters.   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
A Fifth Marauder   
By: PurpleSailorSaturn7   
Part 1: The Marauders   
Chapter 1: Sirius is A Girl Magnet???   
  
"C'mon guys!" James Potter called to his friends as they raced to meet the Hogwarts Express.   
  
"I can't run!" Peter Pettigrew panted, stopping to take a break.  
  
"Hurry or we're going to miss the train!" Remus Lupin called to him.   
  
"Beat ya all there!" Sirius Black yelled to them. He was standing in the train door, looking back at his friends. They arrived a few seconds later, panting and trying to catch their breath. They walked to an empty compartment in the back of the train and plopped down.   
  
"I can't believe we almost missed the train!" Remus panted. He pulled out a magazine and began reading intently.   
  
"And we have who to thank for . . ." Sirius joked, but then stopped short. Something had caught his eye. In the compartment in front of them a group of girls sat talking and laughing. He was particularly interested in one of them, a dark-haired girl who was wearing a pair of shorts and a cerulean blue spaghetti strap shirt. Her hair was pulled into a foreign style; he had surely never seen it before. He finally realized that James was waving a hand in front of his face.   
  
"What's up?" James asked. "You went point blank all of a sudden." He paused and followed Sirius's gaze. "Oh, I see." Before he could finish the girl turned around and stared at him.   
"Hmm? Oh, umm . . . Why are you staring at me like that?" she asked, turning around in her seat. Peter and James smirked when they saw the look on Sirius's face when the girl talked to him. Remus tried to suppress giggles.   
  
"Hello?" she asked again, a look of worry on her face. "Hey, are you okay?"   
  
"Excuse him, Miss." Remus said to her quietly. "I think he's in awe of you."   
  
"I am not!" Sirius roared, turning around to smack Remus, who had backed away.   
"I am honored." The girl bowed slightly. "My name is Meilin," she said politely.   
"I'm James, and these are Sirius, Remus, and Peter," James explained.   
  
"Are you a Gryffindor?" Peter asked. Meilin looked surprised.   
  
"No, but my friend here is. I am a Ravenclaw," she said, gesturing toward her best friend Lily. "Shall I see you guys around?" She smiled and left, the same way she had come in.   
"Sirius, you can wake up now. She's gone," Peter said, prodding him in the side with a   
quill.   
  
"I think Sirius has a case of puppy love," James teased. Sirius punched him in the shoulder.   
  
"Knock it off! I don't like her. I've just . . . umm . . . never seen her around before." Sirius said quickly.   
  
"Whoo whoo!!" Peter whooped, getting an evil glare from Sirius.   
  
"Would you shut up already?" a rather grumpy voice growled. They turned to see who it was, but surprisingly found no one there.   
  
"Hey, I'm down here!" the voice yelled from below. They turned to see a small black cat staring at them from the floor. Its rather large eyes were fixed amusingly on Remus.   
  
"You've got to be kidding," Peter grumbled, picking the cat up by the scruff of its neck. It hissed and scratched him across the face, making him throw it in the air. It landed on Remus's lap.   
  
"What? You've never seen a guardian animagus before?" it meowed angrily, glaring at   
Peter. "I guess you have not. Okay." She jumped off of Remus's lap onto the floor, and in a poof of blue smoke, turned into a rather pretty young girl. She had light sky blue hair with two pale pink streaks in the front. She looked about their age and friendly enough, except for the angry look on her face.   
  
Who are you?" she asked testily. James introduced her to everyone and she decided to join them in their compartment.   
  
"I'm Shampoo," she said, still eying Peter.   
  
"Isn't that a hair care product?" Remus asked while Sirius and Peter tried to keep from laughing.   
  
"Maybe to stupid English people," she retorted. "No offense to most of you." She scowled. "It's Chinese. Like me."   
  
"You said you were a guardian, didn't you? Guardian of what?" James asked, interested.   
"I am my master's guardian. Wherever my master goes, I have to come along and defend her when necessary."   
  
"Who's your master?" Remus asked, amused. Shampoo ignored him, appearing rather interested in something she had pulled out of her bag. Sirius didn't seem to be paying any attention. He was lost in his thoughts about how to get Meilin to pay attention to him.   
"Shampoo?" he asked, an idea popping into his head.   
  
"Yes?" She looked up from her magazine, her green eyes focusing on him, taking in his every feature.   
  
Making sure the rest of the guys were busy (and they were, as they were involved in a food fight with Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans) he leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Do you know Meilin . . . uhh . . ." he faltered.   
  
"Serene. Meilin Serene. Yup, I know her. She is a sixth year Ravenclaw. Well anyway,   
yes, I know her."   
  
"Well . . . I umm . . ." Sirius blushed, and Shampoo caught on quickly.   
  
"Oh, I see . . . You like her, you love her, you've never felt like this before and you'll do anything for her, but most of all . . . Ahh!" Shampoo got knocked over by another sixth year girl.   
  
"Sorry Shampoo," she apologized. "I guess I better watch . . . Oh!" She saw Sirius and the rest of the guys and an evil smirk crossed her face. "I get it! Meilin's little kitty-witty has a crushy-wushy on some guys! How cute!" The red-haired girl giggled slightly. Remus, James, and Peter all looked up. They gave Sirius a confused look which he shrugged off.   
  
"Shut up, Selena," Shampoo grumbled, clearly not enjoying the attention.   
  
"You're lucky." Selena bent down, so her face was level with Sirius's. "Shampoo never   
likes anyone." She winked at him and stood up.  
  
"Oh, Selena!" Shampoo yelled at her. "No offense, Sirius," she said when Selena had left, "but you're not the kind of guy I like. As a matter of fact my crush ever since Meilin's first year is right in this compartment . . ." She couldn't stop herself before it was too late.   
"Is it Peter?" James asked, a childlike tone in his voice. Shampoo didn't answer, but kept looking at him steadily.   
  
"Me?" he asked. She shook her head slightly. James turned around and a wide grin came across his face.   
  
"Remus?" he asked, with an evil note to his voice.   
  
Shampoo blushed and ran after Selena. All the guys burst out laughing except for Remus himself, who took their laughter as a personal insult.   
  
"What's wrong with her liking me?" he asked, his brow creasing in anger.   
  
"Well, you aren't exactly a girl magnet." Sirius couldn't help himself.   
  
"And you are?" he shot back.   
  
"Well, at least she's another animagi," Peter pointed out.   
  
"Yeah, and what help is that?" Remus asked, still quite annoyed.   
  
"She can keep you company," Peter replied.   
  
"Shut up," James said, poking Peter with his finger. "She doesn't seem to like people, does she?"   
  
"She's from another country. Think you'd like other people making fun of your name?" Remus sighed.   
  
"No, but even before then she didn't seem too nice," he pointed out.   
  
"She was thrown halfway across the compartment! Would you be too friendly if you just   
took a surprise flight?" he asked.   
  
"Well . . . no." James's attention was caught by the lady pushing the food cart. He dug out his money and paid for some junk food. Before he knew it, he was getting off the Hogwarts   
Express and climbing into a carriage to be taken to the Hogwarts feast and to watch all of the first years get sorted into their houses. He climbed into one of the carriages and was greeted by a dark but familiar voice and the screams of several girls. Apparently they were telling ghost stories.  
  
"What's wrong?" he asked, his heart pounding.   
  
One girl stood up and muttered something. "Fancy meeting you here," Shampoo greeted him. The girls behind her brightened the lights and joined Shampoo.   
  
"Hey Sirius, Remus, Peter, c'mere!" James called to his friends, who were unloading their luggage from the train.   
  
"What?" Remus asked.  
  
"Look who we're sharing a carriage with." James moved out of the way to show them who was behind him.   
  
"Hello," Shampoo said, her green eyes flickering evilly.   
  
"Oh, um, I hope this isn't a problem," Meilin fumbled.   
  
"Interesting. Very." Selena chirped.   
  
The other girl with them didn't say anything, but just stood silently next to Meilin. The girls all went back to their seats except Shampoo, who stood at the door grinning.   
  
"Care to join us?" she asked. James suddenly thought that her grin looked like it belonged to a Slytherin. She backed away for the boys to heave their stuff in. They reluctantly climbed in and took their seats, four pairs of eyes watching them intently. The boys crowded around a book about Animagi, making sure that the girls were intent on something else. Meilin and a Gryffindor girl were talking in the corner, Selena was busy painting her nails, and Shampoo was, well, being Shampoo. She was back in her cat form and was playing with a yarn ball on the floor. Speaking quietly among themselves, the boys pulled the book out of view.   
"So what do we need for the potion?" Remus asked, producing a piece of parchment from his bag.   
  
"We need--" James was cut off by a young female voice.   
  
"Whatcha doin'?" Meilin asked, her blue eyes filled with curiosity.   
  
"Nothing. Now go away," Sirius hissed at her.   
  
"Okay," she said meekly. She turned and started to walk away. But suddenly she whirled around and grabbed the book out of their hands.  
  
"Oh! You want to become a . . ." Sirius and Remus automatically clapped their hands over her mouth to get her to be quiet.  
  
"Shut up!!! No one's supposed to know!" Sirius growled angrily.   
  
"Promise me, Meilin, that you won't tell anyone," Remus said urgently.   
  
"Well . . ." she said, an evil smile on her lips.   
  
"Promise us, Meilin." The boys said in unison.   
  
"What's up over there?" Selena asked, attracting the other girls' attention.   
  
"Nothing." Meilin called back. "We're having a nice chat!"   
  
"Well . . . I will. But only on one condition," she said.   
  
James could see where Shampoo got her evilness from.   
  
"What?" Remus sighed.   
  
"You have to let me become one too. And if you don't . . ." She didn't finish.   
  
"If we don't . . .?" Peter asked.   
  
"If you don't, I'll tell everyone." She grinned wickedly. "Well? Whaddya say?"   
  
The boys stared at her in disbelief. They huddled together and, after a few minutes and a lot of arguing, finally made their decision.   
  
"Meilin . . ." Peter said, prolonging the moment to make her mad,   
  
" . . .you're in." Remus finished.   
  
"YES!!!" she screamed, causing everyone to stare at her. "Heh heh, sorry," she apologized, turning red. The boys laughed at her rather amusing spirit.   
  
"You can't tell anyone," Sirius warned. "Or you get sudden death," he joked.   
  
"Oh, I'm so scared." She laughed. "It's so quiet in here. We need some music," she decided.   
  
"This should be amusing," Peter whispered. Shampoo glared at him from the floor. Meilin dug through her bag and pulled out a flute-like instrument.   
  
"What's that?" James frowned. It wasn't like any flute he had ever seen.   
  
"It's a dreamer's pipe," she replied, digging for something else.   
  
"What's a dreamer's pipe?" Peter asked. Remus shot him a look of disbelief.   
  
"Well, let's put it this way. It's like a muggle flute, but if you play a certain tune you can make other people fall asleep." She found what she was looking for and pulled it out. Her black odangos (Author's Note: Sailor Moon hair, if that helps any!!) fell onto her shoulders, making her automatically brush them back. She stuffed something in her robes and picked up the pipe. She started playing a low keyed song, letting each note ring in the air. After the song was over about five minutes later, everyone clapped, Remus being the loudest. The carriage slowed and stopped and everyone climbed out.   
  
"See you at dinner!" Meilin called over her shoulder as she walked off with her friends. Peter didn't look to happy about letting her become an animagi with them, and he truly showed it.   
  
"Isn't she that exchange student from the first year we were here?" James asked, suddenly recognizing the fact that he had seen her name somewhere else.   
  
"Yes, I think she is. Judging by the kimono she was wearing before we got into the carriage, I would guess she is from Japan," Remus responded, heaving his bag over his shoulder. They were walking toward the Gryffindor dorms when they saw Meilin's friend, Selena, talking quietly to Lucius Malfoy. She looked love struck, but slowly her expression changed into a look of sheer terror.   
  
"How could you?!" she demanded, stamping her foot.   
  
"Easy." Malfoy's greasy smile made Sirius sick.   
  
"I'll be there in a minute," he called to his friends, going over to see what the two Slytherins were talking about. He hid behind a statue so they wouldn't see him, while he could hear every word they were saying.   
  
"You dirty rat!" Selena snarled. And with that she stomped off, her curly red pigtails bouncing. Sirius waited to see what Malfoy would say, but he didn't say anything. He stalked off after her and Sirius went to join his friends.   
  
"I wonder what that was about," he said to himself, rather happy that someone had made Malfoy angry. He deserved it. Sirius entered his dorm and threw his stuff onto the bed. Remus had already unpacked and was lying on his bed reading a book, James was rummaging through his trunk, and Peter was eating some chocolate frogs.   
  
"You pig!" James said when he saw Peter. "We're going to eat in a minute!"   
  
"I can't help it. I'm hungry!" Peter whined. "And a minute is too long." Remus snorted and Sirius laughed as the two kept bickering. They had the dorm to themselves. There was no one else in their dorm; the other Gryffindor boys in their year had another dorm, since there were so many of them. There were more sixth year girls than boys for some reason, and there always had been.  
  
******   
  
Shampoo meowed impatiently as she waited for Meilin to get up the stairs to the Ravenclaw common room.   
  
"Stop fussing, Shampoo," Meilin said, resting for a minute. "After all, I have to carry your trunk up these stupid stairs anyway. Why couldn't I have been a Gryffindor? Or a Hufflepuff? They don't have so many stupid stairs!" she complained, standing up and dragging the two heavy trunks up the stairs behind her.   
  
"If these weren't so heavy . . ." She trailed off, lost in her thoughts.   
  
"Stop complaining and c'mon!" Shampoo meowed, anxious to get to their dorm.   
  
"Oh yes. I suppose you're right." She sighed and managed to get the trunk up the stairs. She opened the door to her dorm and was greeted by the normal crowd of girls.   
  
Shampoo transformed and jumped on her bed, a look of pure pleasure on her face.   
  
"Hey Meilin! Up for a kareoke competition tonight? I'm gonna kick your butt!" Her friend Stephanie called out.   
  
"Okay," she responded, trying to make her way through the crowd of girls at the door.   
"Meilin!" Missy, her long-time dorm mate, pushed through the crowd. "I've got loads of gossip I need to tell you!"   
  
"You're starting to sound more and more like Selena every day!" Meilin laughed.   
"Hey," Meilin yelled to her friend Rachel. "Could you get me something to drink? I'm dying of thirst!"   
  
Meilin collapsed on her bed and sighed. The twins, Angel and Misty, came over and sat on the corner of her bed.   
  
"Up for a game later?" they asked. She nodded and then laughed again.   
  
"I just got through the door and you're already attacking me!" she exclaimed. Shampoo   
snorted.   
  
"Of course. They had to live without you all summer. You think you would get anything   
different?"   
  
Meilin ignored Shampoo and looked around. "Guys! We haven't even been here a day and our dorm is already a pigsty!" She sighed and plopped down on her favorite inflatable chair, a blue sparkly one with star confetti inside it. Before she knew it she had fallen asleep.   
  
"Get up!! C'mon, we're gonna miss dinner!" Shampoo said, shaking her.   
  
"Oh, um, yeah! Okay!" She got up and followed Shampoo to the Ravenclaw table in the Great Hall. 


	2. The Marauder's First Meeting

Ok, copyright . . . Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the "Bring It On" soundtrack and "Blessed Union of Souls." The characters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to me. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/quoters.   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
Chapter 2: The Marauders' First Meeting   
  
Meilin yawned as she reached the Ravenclaw table. Shampoo was meowing impatiently and waiting for her food on the floor. Meilin wasn't paying attention to her, but instead had her eyes fixed on Albus Dumbledore. He smiled at her and looked away to talk to Minerva McGonagall, one of Meilin's two favorite teachers.   
  
What's happening to me? she thought, her mind beginning to lose focus. I must fight it! She tried harder to push the black cloud out of her mind, but it was too difficult. It enveloped her in darkness and she felt lost. She passed out and fell on the floor, just missing Shampoo.   
  
"What was that about?" Missy asked, watching Shampoo place one of her paws on Meilin's forehead.   
  
"Wake up! NOW!!!" Shampoo ordered, and strangely, it worked. Meilin sat up and shook herself for a minute.   
  
"Waz up?" She asked Shampoo groggily. Lily had rushed over from the Gryffindor table to check on Meilin.   
  
"Are you okay?" She asked worriedly.   
  
"She's acting up again. She shouldn't be doing that this early in the year!" Shampoo hissed, drawing in her breath. Before either one could say anything else the boys had rushed over to see if something was wrong. Remus helped Meilin up, but she almost fell over again.   
  
"You okay?" Sirius asked her. He couldn't keep the concern out of his voice.   
  
"I'm okay . . ." Meilin took a minute to finish. "Now."   
  
"What happened?" James asked, almost stepping on Shampoo's tail, making her hiss at him.   
"I'm not quite sure," Meilin muttered, catching her breath. A sudden surge of energy shook her body. "MALFOY!!!" she screeched. Most of the people in the Great Hall turned to stare at her. She stomped off in anger.   
  
"What was that all about?" Peter asked, watching her walk away.   
  
"No clue." Shampoo responded.  
  
******  
  
"MALFOY!!!" Meilin wrenched open the door to the Slytherin common room. She was met by many stares and a few cries of, "How the hell did you get in here?" Almost everyone had returned from the feast by now. She had taken a slight detour to get her dreamer's pipe out of her dorm before she came. She always carried it when she went near people she didn't trust.   
  
She stormed up the stairs and slammed the door open to Lucius Malfoy's dorm. "MALFOY!!!" she yelled again. He looked up from his bed where he had been reading a book. A few of his roommates looked at her but she waved their stares off. "I want to talk, and I want to talk now," she demanded, watching a greasy smile cross Malfoy's lips.   
  
"What could you possibly want that couldn't be said in front of them?" he asked, trying to make her madder.   
  
"You know as well as I do what this is about," she hissed. He got off of his bed and strolled over to her. They went to a hallway not far from the Ravenclaw tower.   
  
"What do you want, Meilin-my-sweet?" he said in an unsuccessful attempt to remind her of the secret that they shared.   
  
"Malfoy, I can't keep this any longer . . . I am in love," she tried reasoning. "I demand that you set me free."   
  
"Sorry, but I can't." Malfoy laughed. "You're too good of a servant to give up."   
"Malfoy, I'm not your slave!" she protested.   
  
"Ah yes, but I know something about you that would make that boy cringe." His grin widened and Meilin could tell he was enjoying torturing her.   
  
"No," she said, stifling her sobs. "No."   
  
"As long as you remain faithful to me I will keep your secret, like I promised." He walked off, leaving her to herself. She knew he was right. He knew something about her that would make everyone turn on her. She sat and cried openly into her arms for about the next thirty minutes. She managed to finally control her sobs and glanced down at her watch. It was 11:35 at night. She stood up and started running for the Ravenclaw tower. She was only a few yards away from the steps that led to her house tower when she crashed into something. Or someone. She looked up and it took a moment for her eyes to focus in the dark hallway. She gasped as she recognized the face. "Sirius? What are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.   
  
"Looking for you," Sirius replied. "C'mon."  
  
"Where are we going?"   
  
"James is holding a important meeting in one of the secret passageways."   
  
They rushed off to meet their friends. They had no clue that they were being watched by a pair of huge green eyes. (AN: Hint Hint . . .)   
  
******   
  
"What's taking so long?" Peter complained.  
  
"Well, Meilin could be anywhere in the school. It might take a few minutes to find her," Remus yawned.   
  
"If she's lucky she's still in bed," Peter grumbled.   
  
The door to the secret passage opened and Sirius and Meilin were revealed.   
  
"What took you so long?" Peter asked.   
  
"Come to think of it, what were you doing out so late at night anyway?" Sirius turned to   
Meilin.   
  
"Well . . . I was talking to someone and lost track of time," she explained.   
  
"Are you sure you're okay?" Remus questioned.  
  
Meilin nodded her head and turned to James. "What are we doing here anyway?"   
  
"We are here to discuss . . ." He suddenly stopped talking. He heard something behind him. Everyone looked at him as if expecting an answer to why he suddenly stopped.   
  
"Sorry," he apologized. "I thought I heard something." He started talking and asked if they had any ideas on how to become animagi.   
  
"So that's what you're up to," a cold voice behind them said suddenly.   
  
Meilin screamed and without paying attention jumped on Sirius. A few seconds later she realized what she had done.   
  
"Sorry." She blushed. She turned to the dark figure that was now standing behind James. "Shampoo, how dare you! You scared me half to death!" she said angrily.   
  
"Heh heh . . . Wait until the professors hear about this," Shampoo laughed.   
  
"Go crawl under a rock and eat yourself, girl. You sound like a Slytherin," Meilin retorted.   
  
"Hey, don't insult us Slytherins!" another voice behind Shampoo called out.   
  
"Selena?" Meilin guessed, watching the girl come forward. "What are you doing up?"   
"Following you." She smirked. "I've been here long enough to get interested," she laughed. It was a dark, evil, Slytherin laugh.   
  
"You know, I can report you to the Ministry and get you in a lot of trouble." Shampoo studied Meilin's face to see if she was showing any sign of emotion.   
  
"Well Shampoo, you could do that, but then I would spread a little rumor around the school about you." Meilin smiled evilly.   
  
Shampoo thought for a minute before she turned around to leave. "I'll get you lateR," she growled and left, leaving Selena to stand there alone.   
  
"Why don't you go after her?" Sirius asked angrily.   
  
"Well, I overheard you talking in the carriage yesterday, and well . . ." Selena didn't continue. She looked at them with her huge eyes, as if begging for something.   
  
Meilin sighed and turned to her new friends. "What do ya say? She won't go away until we say yes." She looked back at Selena who had a fake, innocent smile on her face. The five huddled together to talk about the new girl.   
  
"I don't know," James said, glancing at Selena. "She doesn't look like someone we can trust."   
  
"She's okay," Meilin admitted. "For a Slytherin, I mean. She's nice, but well . . . She loves to gossip."   
  
"That could be bad," Remus piped up.   
  
"There's one girl too many already," Peter whined.   
  
"I HEARD that." Meilin glared at him. "Well, I think it's pretty much tied. Remus has the last vote."   
  
Everyone stared at him. Finally he said, "We'll let her in for now but if something happens we have to ditch her."   
  
Meilin turned to her friend, a smile crossing her lips. Selena grinned and she and Meilin started jumping up and down, screaming.   
  
"I can't believe it!" Selena squealed.   
  
"Yes!" Meilin joined in on her screaming.   
  
"Shut up or you're going to give us away." James turned around, giving them a look that made Selena frown.   
  
"Excuse me," she said to him. She joined them on the floor, sitting next to Peter. Meilin cracked up and Selena shot her an evil look.   
  
"Is there something going on here?" Remus asked, looking at the girls.   
  
Meilin cracked up and finally spilled it. "Selena likes Peter!" She laughed along with everyone but Peter, who was giving Selena an odd look, and Selena, who was going over to strangle Meilin. Meilin managed to stop laughing, unlike the rest of the group who were still cracking up, and got to her feet.   
  
"Oh c'mon, we're all friends here. They would have found out sooner or later anyway." Meilin burst out laughing again, making Selena even madder. Selena stood up and grabbed Meilin, and started violently shaking her and yelling in another language.   
  
Sirius stood up angrily and pulled Selena away from Meilin. "What do you think you're doing?" He demanded.   
  
Selena didn't say anything and Meilin slowly came in between them. "She's right. I deserved it." She turned to leave and turned around again. "Sorry, Selena." She walked toward the Ravenclaw tower. Selena managed to push herself away from Sirius, who was still intent on killing her, and turned toward the door. She turned as if she was going to say something but decided against it. She went back to her dorm in the Slytherin dungeons.   
  
"What you did for Meilin was nice. I don't understand how Meilin could be friends with that Selena girl, anyway," James said quietly.   
  
"I like her, okay! I admit it!" Sirius stomped off, leaving Remus, Peter, and James in the narrow passageway.  
  
******   
  
Meilin climbed the stairs to her dorm. She looked at her watch and noticed that it was almost two in the morning. She opened the door to her dorm quietly and noticed Rachel was the only one up. She was sitting on her bed taking off her makeup. She glanced up as Meilin came in, tired and famished.   
  
"Yo, girl," Rachel called out to Meilin from her bed. "Where have you been? Everyone waited for you to get back but you never came. You okay? You look like you got hit by a truck."  
  
"I'm fine, just tired." She sighed and pulled on her pajamas. They were red silk pajamas with take out food all over them. She looked around the room as she put bows on her odangos to keep them from coming out. Shampoo was sprawled out on her bed, Missy was asleep on the floor hugging her record player gravely, Stephanie had her feet on her bed with the rest of her body on the floor, and Misty and Angel were asleep in their inflatable chairs. Meilin lay on her bed and fell asleep almost instantly thinking about her true love . . .   
  
******   
  
The next morning Remus was awoken by a shout. He sat up groggily to see what the yelling was all about. He walked outside with Peter, James, and Sirius following close at his heels. In the common room a sixth year girl was screaming about something in her dorm.   
  
"What is going on here?" Professor McGonagall came into the common room.   
  
"There is a snake in my dorm!" The girl screeched. Almost everyone started laughing and muttering.   
  
"What do we have first period?" Peter asked sleepily, watching Professor McGonagall go into the girls' dorm.   
  
"Potions," James answered lazily.   
  
"Don't tell me it's with the Slytherins," Sirius yawned.   
  
"It is," Remus replied, fishing out his schedule.   
  
"Let's go get breakfast," James said, stifling a yawn.  
  
Remus nodded and grabbed his bag. He followed the to the Great Hall where most of the school were already enjoying their breakfasts.   
  
"Can I see someone's schedule? I lost mine," Peter asked, digging in his bag. Remus passed his to Peter and helped himself to a plateful of waffles. Remus had already memorized the schedule. First they had Potions, then Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs, a free period, History of Magic, Divination, Double Charms with the Ravenclaws, and finally Astronomy.  
  
Sirius was making some stupid joke about Lucius Malfoy when Remus felt a tap on his back. He turned around to find Meilin, Shampoo, Selena, and the red-haired Gryffindor who Meilin called Lily.   
  
"Hi!" Meilin chirped happily. "Well, I don't have time to chat. I've got to get going. I came to tell you guys that Quidditch tryouts are today. See ya!" She stood up, and before leaving, passed a note to Remus. She walked off with her friends, laughing and talking excitedly.  
  
"Is anyone besides me trying out for Quidditch?" James asked, looking around.   
  
"I am," Sirius said, taking another sip of his orange juice.   
  
"What time are the tryouts anyway?" Peter asked.   
  
"Hey, Meilin!" James got her attention just before she went out the door.   
  
"Yes?" she called back.   
  
"What time are the tryouts?"   
  
"Right after breakfast is over. See ya!" She left and the door closed gently behind her. James and Sirus quickly finished eating and hurried out the door after her. "Back when tryouts are over," James said before leaving.   
  
Remus watched them leave and opened the folded note Meilin gave him. In loopy cursive writing the note said: Meet me tonight at 11:00 on the Quidditch field. Come alone. He frowned. It wasn't signed and it didn't look like something Meilin would write. Before he could think about the note any more, Peter was dragging him off to Potions.   
  
******   
  
James and Sirius had just got on the Quidditch field when they had started having the tryouts.   
  
"What are you trying out for this year anyway?" Sirius asked James.   
  
"Seeker. And you?" he replied.  
  
"Beater."   
  
"Potter, James," a deep voice said behind him. He told James to do some flips and catch the Snitch in five minutes. Sirius watched James tackle these one by one.  
  
Sirius thought he heard some drumming somewhere. He looked around and found the source of the music. A group of four girls was sitting up in a cleared off section of the stands. One girl was banging on some drums, two were standing in front of a microphone and one had an electric guitar. They weren't that bad, either. Actually, they were pretty good. The two with the microphone started singing but it was too far away to hear what they were saying. Sirius looked over to a group of people who were done trying out. A few of them were whistling and looking through a pair of omnioculars while shouting crude comments. He was about to go over and get a pair himself when it was his turn to try out. He mounted his broom and was off, smacking at Bludgers. James went over to the group of guys and found one his friends.   
  
"What's going on?" he asked, confused.   
  
"There are these really cute girls up there! They're playing on some muggle instruments and singing. I wish I could hear them." He passed the omnioculars to James. "Here, want a look?"  
  
"Sure." James took the omnioculars and looked toward the girls. He couldn't believe what he saw . . . 


	3. A Midnight Kiss

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls.. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
Chapter 3: A Midnight Kiss  
  
James' mouth dropped open. What was Meilin doing in the stands of the quidditch field with her friends ... playing the drums!?!? Now this was weird. Meilin's friend Selena was arguing with some guy. James adjusted the ominoculars to see who it was and gasped in surprise. Selena was talking to Severus Snape, a rather mean Slytherin. Sirius jogged over to James.  
  
"What are you looking at?" He asked, panting.  
  
"Isn't that Meilin and her group of friends?" James asked abruptly. He handed the ominoculars to Sirius who focused the on the girls in the stands.  
  
"What are they doing talking to Snape? I thought they didn't even like him."   
  
Before James could reply the man that was organizing the tryouts called everyone together.   
  
"The results will be posted on next Tuesday." The man said gruffly and walked off.   
  
In no hurry to go to potions, Sirius and James made there way up the stairs to where the girls were. As they drew nearer they could hear the girls singing and playing their instruments. As they go t close the music was blaring. Sure enough, Meilin and her friends were the ones having a private concert for Severus Snape.   
  
"What's going on here?" James asked when he had reached the girls.  
  
"Well, we're practicing for something that's supposed to happen later in the year." Selena Andrews, one of Meilin's best friends explained.   
  
"What?" Sirius asked.  
  
"We aren't supposed to tell." Shampoo cut in.   
  
"What's he doing here?" Sirius leaned close to Meilin.  
  
"Who? Severus? Oh, he's listening to see if we're any good. Do you two want to listen for a few minutes?" Meilin invited.  
  
"I guess so." James accepted.  
  
"Ready?" Selena turned to her friends. "1, 2, 3- GO!" Meilin started first with playing the drums and was followed closely by the rest of the girls on their instruments. James and Sirius sat as far as possible from Severus. They were washed in a sweet wave of music as the girls started playing harder. Meilin's voice along with Shampoo's, Seller's, and Lily's created a harmonica tune that was nothing less than beautiful. When the song ended the boys clapped and cheered.   
  
"You guys were good." Sirius complimented as the girls packed their instruments up.  
  
"Thanks. I always thought I sounded horrible by myself, but when we put our voices together I think we sound really good." Meilin shrugged.  
  
"Hey," James confronted Selena and Lily. "How did you manage to get out of potions?" he asked.  
  
"We told the professor we were trying out for Quidditch." Selena smiled evilly. "I guess it worked because he didn't say anything else to us."  
  
James frowned, but realized he had to give them credit for being able to fool the potions professor. He had to be the hardest of them all to fool. But they had done it.  
  
"Would you like to walk with me to my next class?" Meilin asked Sirius privately.  
  
"Umm..." He pinched himself to see if he was dreaming.   
  
"Well?"  
  
"Sure." His heart was pounding rapidly in his chest.  
  
"Do you mind if we stop by my dorm before we go to our next classes?" She asked, bending over to pick up her bag.  
  
"Okay." He responded, not quite minding he was going to miss the rest of potions.   
  
They walked together and Meilin opened the door to the Ravenclaw common room. "Care to come with me?" She asked, grinning.  
  
"What else is there to do?" He joked.  
  
Meilin walked into her dorm, which was, surprisingly, empty. She had transfigured the drums into porcelain glass drums that were about an inch tall. She put them on her nightstand gently and grabbed a necklace off of the dresser.   
  
"Sorry it's such a mess in here." She apologized. Sirius hadn't been paying attention to the mess, but instead, he was focusing his attention on a picture on the dresser.  
  
"Who's she?" He asked her, picking up the picture.  
  
Meilin stood up and walked over to where he was standing and looked at the picture. It was of two small girls, one about 3 and the other 17. "Oh," she said, taking the picture into her hands. "That's me and my older sister, Shannon, when I was younger." She placed it back on the dresser and went back to trying to put her necklace on.  
  
"Feel free to look around. That dresser is mine, so you can pick up whatever you want off of it. Just watch the other girls stuff." She said over her shoulder.  
  
He picked up some unique items and examined them. Strangely, His eyes kept drifting to the picture of Meilin and her sister.  
  
"Sirius?" She asked unexpectedly, making him jump.  
  
"Yes?" He replied, turning to look at her.  
  
"Can you help me with this dang contraption? It won't hook."   
  
Sirius walked over and sat on Meilin's bed. Meilin's hair smelled like a bunch of rose petals. He wished he could stay in that moment forever. He grasped hold of the clasp and slowly hooked it. He stood up.  
  
"We better be going." He said quietly, watching her turn the necklace around so the charm was in front.   
  
"I suppose your right." She stood up and grabbed her bag. "Thanks for the help. This thing is really temperamental." She smiled at him. His heart started beating even faster until it felt a though it was going to burst out of his chest.  
  
Part of a song came to Meilin's mind. "I dream a world where you understand, But I dream a million sleepless nights. I dream of fire when your touching my hand, But it twists into smoke when I turn on the lights." She sang aloud.   
  
"What? Did you say something?" Sirius was awoke from his thoughts.  
  
"Oh, sorry. I wasn't paying attention." Meilin looked down about the same time Sirius did. They noticed that they were holding hands. They both pulled away at the same time, and Meilin started to blush.  
  
"Sorry." She apologized. She stopped where they would have to separate and go to their separate classes.   
  
"See ya at charms!" Sirius called to her and went find James. He found James and they walked together to Defense Against The Dark Arts. Sirius couldn't keep his mind on his classes. He looked forward to double charms after lunch when he could see Meilin again. The minutes passed like hours for him as time slowly ticked away until he would get to go to double charms. Finally it was time for lunch. James spent most of lunch joking and telling Peter and Remus about what they had seen during the Quidditch tryouts. Sirius watched the clock tick away boredly waiting for the Ravenclaws to fill up their table. He half listened as James recounted all the flips he had done. Suddenly, a huge wave of students came in, laughing and chatting away happily. He looked anxiously to see if he could find Meilin in the crowd of students. He turned around to look among the happy Ravenclaws as they sat down to enjoy their lunch. There she was, looking bored while Shampoo chirped away about something. She noticed him and perked up. She waved to him and mouthed the words "She never shuts up." to him while pointing at Shampoo. He was going to mouth something back to her but his view was blocked by a girl who sat down in front of Meilin. Slowly everyone began to file out of the great hall as the meal ended. He looked to find her, but she was gone. He followed Peter, Remus, and James to charms where Prof. Flitwick was waiting patiently. Sirius sat down next to James, who had Remus next to him, and Peter next to him. Sirius watched quietly as a group of Ravenclaw girls walked in and took their seats. Shampoo and Meilin followed them, laughing and chatting in a foreign language. They surveyed their choices in seats, and before Shampoo could protest, Meilin sat down on the other side of Sirius.  
  
"Mind if I sit here?" She asked, Shampoo sitting on the other side of her.   
  
Sirius nodded, not able to speak. Prof. Flitwick demanded attention of the class. Meilin looked up at him, her blue eyes shining in the sunlight in the window.   
  
"We are going to review cheering charms today." Prof. Flitwick said, looking at the class. "Before we do that I am going to give you your charms partner for the rest of the year." Most of the students started to groan. Meilin looked rather excited, Like a young child on Christmas Eve.   
  
Flitwick went down the list of Gryffindors and the list of Ravenclaws and matched them up.   
  
"Potter, James." He called, looking around for James. "Your partner is Missy Luiso." he gestured towards a skinny, disappointed looking Ravenclaw girl with dark brown hair.   
  
"Lupin, Remus. You're with Miss Shampoo Kumashiro. Kaplan, Angel, you are partners with Peter Pettigrew."   
  
The two shot each other looks of disgust and reluctantly moved.  
  
"Serene, Meilin," Flitwick looked around for her, and smiled when he noticed her in the back row.  
  
Please let it be me, Sirius thought, Please let it be me.  
  
"Your partners with Sirius Black."  
  
Meilin turned around and smiled at Sirius.   
  
"You know what?" she asked, scooting her chair closer to his. "I was hoping it was going to be you."  
  
Flitwick finished reading off the list of names and gave them directions on how to make cheering charms and told them to start making them. Sirius and Meilin did pretty well until Meilin decided to pick up her cauldron, which accidentally spilled all of its contents on Sirius. Meilin apologized and started to laugh.  
  
"You look like a drowned duck!" she laughed. Half the class turned to see what all the commotion was about.  
  
"Yeah, thanks," Sirius said sarcastically.  
  
"I am so sorry about that." She offered him a towel that she had pulled out of her bag.   
Shampoo burst out laughing, almost knocking her cauldron over, too. Meilin started cleaning up the mess while Sirius went to the bathroom to get cleaned up.   
  
"Class is dismissed." Flitwick sighed, shaking his head.  
  
"Hey, Sirius!" Meilin caught up to him after Charms. "I am so sorry about what happened today. I didn't mean to," She apologized for the second time.  
  
"It's OK. Just forget about it." He replied.  
  
"Are you sure?" She asked, stopping in the middle of the hall.  
  
"Yes, It's okay. I'm sure." He confirmed.  
  
"I'm glad. I'll see you at dinner?" She smiled.  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Getting popular with the girls?" James joked.  
  
"I don't see any girls falling at your feet. She thinks I'm charming." He teased.  
  
"Did she really say that? And I have plenty of girls falling at my feet."  
  
"Umm ... well, no."  
  
"I rest my case."  
  
"Do you know your getting on my nerves?"  
  
"I'm supposed to. I'm your best friend." James smiled.  
  
"Sometimes I wonder why..."  
  
"I heard that..."  
  
"I was joking."  
  
"Good."  
  
******  
  
That night at 9:30 Remus left the Gryffindor tower to go to the quidditch field. The night air was cold and crisp, like on a cold fall day with the leaves swirling around in the wind. He walked across the dew covered grass, making soft crunches with each step. He got to the stadium and looked around. No one was there. He checked his watch and noticed it was 9:47. He looked up at the starry sky. It looked like an unfinished game of connect-the-dots. At 9:56 he glanced around.  
  
Maybe she isn't coming, he thought. This could just be a prank. He heard the soft pat, pat, pat, pat of footsteps behind him. Earlier he had watched a cat climb up and down the rows of seats. He turned around and was surprised by what he saw. Shampoo stood a few steps above him, a thin jacket wrapped around her waist.  
  
"Hey," She said gently. "Well, What do you think?" she spun around to model off her clothes. She was wearing fringed jean shorts and a halter top. She had on icy blue lipstick that matched the color of her jacket.  
  
"You look nice." Remus replied. He couldn't believe it. Of all the people he certainly hadn't expected to see Shampoo.  
  
She hopped down to the step where he was. "I'm surprised. I normally don't fall for guys, but I guess I did now." She shivered. "Now don't object;" she said. She leaned closer and her lips met his. She pulled back a few seconds later, her green eyes glowing with love and embarrassment. 


	4. A Dragon of A Tail

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls.. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
Chapter 4: A Dragon Of A Tail  
  
Remus stared at her in shock. Had that just happened? He was sure it had. Shampoo stood and grinned at him.  
  
"Well, I better go back before I get caught. See you tomorrow Remus," She said gently over her shoulder as she walked slowly down the steps. He watched her and finally seemed to recover from the kiss. He watched her as she walked into the school and he reluctantly left the quidditch field, muttering to himself.  
  
  
******   
  
"Where is it?" Meilin groaned. She dug around under her bed, looking for a small key to her diary.  
  
"Would you keep it down?" Missy complained from under her covers. "I'm trying to sleep. It's way past midnight."  
  
"Sorry," Meilin whispered. She pulled herself out from under the bed and thought hard. I need to get in that diary! she thought. Without it I won't know when I have to meet that man! She cursed at herself under her breath. This just simply wasn't working. She thought for a moment and went over to Angel's dresser. She picked up one of Angel's hair pins and started picking at the lock. She heard a soft "click" and opened it quickly. She looked down upon her loopy handwriting and saw, scribbled on the front page, Hogsmeade-4:30 a.m. She gasped. I don't have very long! She thought. She pulled out a small backpack and filled it with items; A pillow, a blanket, a waterbottle, and various small items. She snapped the clasp shut and turned to leave. She turned hesitantly and grabbed a stack of cards that were at the edge of her bed. She walked quickly and quietly down the empty corridors and to the secret passage to Hogsmeade. Fifteen minutes later she was sitting at a table in the back of the three broomsticks. She pulled out the cards and started doing numerous card tricks to pass the time. She heard a bell jingle as someone stepped through the door. She craned her neck to see the man standing in the doorway. He sat down and started talking to one of the night shift waitresses. He sat down and ordered a drink and started to look around, as if he was waiting for someone. His eyes locked on hers and he waved his hand for her to come over to him. Meilin caught a good glimpse of him and her heart jumped. Yes! She was finally going to get what she had been waiting for all year. She basically skipped as she went over to him.  
  
"Did you bring it?" She asked eagerly.  
  
"Woah kid, Yes, I brought it." He said, looking at her. "You sure you can handle it?"  
  
"I'm sure. What kind is it?"   
  
"Chinese Fireball. It'll be a few months before it hatches, though."   
  
"I don't care how long it takes. I'm just happy I have one." She had dreamed her whole life of owning a dragon. Now that dream was becoming reality. She watched impatiently as he pulled the egg out of his rucksack and handed it to her. She rubbed her hands over the warm surface of the egg and her face glowed with delight.  
  
"I'm glad you like it. It was hard to get it in the first place." He smiled as he watched her carefully wrap it in the blanket she had in her bag.   
  
"Thank you so much! I have been dreaming of this moment my whole life!" She spun around in circles happily.   
  
"Send an owl if you need anything."   
  
"Okay."  
  
Meilin hurried out of the Three Broomsticks back towards Hogwarts. She broke into a run and then a thought occurred; She wasn't allowed to have a dragon in the school. But what was she going to do? She kept running and promised herself to work it out the next morning.  
  
******  
  
"James! How could you?" Selena demanded as she saw the fake rat he put in her bag. It was breakfast, and Dumbledore let them sit at other tables. James cracked up along with everyone else. Selena was deathly afraid of rats. She frowned and threw it on the floor. She stomped on it and kicked it towards James, which made him laugh even more. Meilin sat and watched all of this from within her barrier of books. She was searching for a spell that would help her hide the egg, which she had left in the trunk at the edge of her bed. She sighed.   
  
"Please quiet down. I'm trying to work." She said, exasperated.  
  
"Sorry Meilin," Remus said, trying to stop laughing.  
  
"It's okay."  
  
"Have you found any more information on how to become an animangi?" Peter asked in a hushed tone.  
  
"If I did, Wouldn't I have told you?" She said annoyedly.  
  
Sirius hadn't said anything all morning long. He sat staring at an ink pen in deep thought. He flipped it in the air a couple of times and finally looked up.  
  
"I think it's getting rather hopeless. We haven't found anything at all." He said pessimistically.   
  
"Well, if you two aren't just the happiest people in the world." Shampoo commented, twirling a lock of her hair in between her fingers.   
  
"Oh crap! I forgot..." Meilin stopped herself. "I have to go. It's an emergency. See you at charms!" She bounded off, throwing open the door as she went.  
  
She ran up the stairs to her dorm and threw open the door. She went over to the chest and unlocked it, carefully making sure that no one was there. She searched her stuff for the lamp she had been keeping and remembered that she had let Misty borrow it for her dresser. She went over and unplugged it, and then bounded back to the trunk. She placed her hand on the egg to see if it was still warm. It was as warm as it always had been. She hooked up the lamp and placed it back in with the egg. She locked the trunk back and got a huge idea. She skipped out of the school and through the grounds. She saw Hagrid's cabin looming ahead, and she broke into a run. She carefully knocked on the door, and listened as she heard Hagrid's booming footsteps coming towards the door.   
  
"Who is it?" He asked before he opened the door.  
  
"Meilin. I have come to ask a... urm... favor." She hesitated.  
  
"Would yeh care to come in?" He asked. She followed him into the cabin and sat down.   
  
"Would yeh like some tea?" He asked.  
  
"No thanks, I can't stay long." She sighed. "I have a huge favor to ask you."  
  
"What is it?"   
  
"Well,... If you promise not to tell anybody, I have a dragon egg." He seemed to think this was some evil joke, but thought against it.  
  
"Now how did yeh manage to get that?" he asked, a happy look coming across his face.  
  
"Well, one of my brothers knows someone who sells dragon eggs for people to raise. I simply challenged him to a game of wit and won, so he promised me a dragon egg." She stopped to take a breath.  
  
"Does Dumbledore know about this?"  
  
"No. No one knows but me."  
  
"And how can I help you?"  
  
"Well, I can't always take care of it, and besides that I don't really know how to take care of it, So I need somebody to help me." She looked at him with pleading eyes. "Will you please help me?"  
  
He stared at her long and hard. Finally, he sighed and said," Yes, I'll help. Let me know when yeh need me to take care of it."  
  
"Thank you so much!" She threw her arms around him and grabbed her bag. "I'd better be going."  
  
"Hey Meilin, What kind of dragon is it anyway?"  
  
"It's a Chinese fireball. It should hatch sometime this December." She shrugged and walked out the door, closing it softly behind her.  
  
"She's a nice kid, but a strange one." Hagrid muttered.  
  
******  
  
Selena sat staring out the window of the divination class. Professor Trelawny was rattling off something about the kid next to her dying from a fatal disease. She looked down at her fingernails. The night before she had painted them black out of boredom. She sighed and flipped her curly red hair. She didn't like her hair, and often wished she could trade it for any other color hair in the world. In fact, If she could trade anyone in specific, she would trade Meilin for her long, straight, beautiful black hair. In fact, the only part of Meilin's hair that was curly was two thin strands by her ears. Selena stared boredly into the fireplace in which flames enveloped pieces of wood whole. She really hated her position in life. Before she met Meilin she had almost committed suicide a few times. She was always drunk and rather stubborn. She hadn't liked people very much, either. But something about Meilin's cheerfulness had captured her, enveloping her like the flames enveloped the wood, dragging her closer to people.   
  
"Feeling rather gloomy?" A firmilier voice sneered.  
  
"Oh, hello Lucius." She looked up into his dark eyes. "What would you want?"  
  
"Well, I want to sit down."  
  
Selena stared at him for a moment and pulled her stuff off of the desk next to her. "And?"  
  
He smiled a dark, greasy smile. "I just want to sit next to the most beautiful girl in the Slytherin household of course." He grasped her hand, which she quickly pulled away.   
  
"Did anyone ever tell you that your beauty radiates over the entire school?" He made a move to grasp her hand again, making sure Trelawny was still busy.  
  
"What do you want?" She asked again, moving her hand away from him. Before he could answer Trelawny announced that the class was dismissed and Selena ran out the door to avoid further conversation with him. Two more periods until lunch, where she could talk to her friends about how she had been feeling recently.   
  
She darted down the corridors to her next class when she bumped into a fellow Slytherin.  
  
"Oh hello, Severus." She said, her heart racing. She had always had a sort of crush on him, but they still remained nothing more than friends.  
  
"Hello." He grumbled.  
  
"Where have you been? I didn't see you in divination." She said, turning around and following him.  
  
"I've been talking to Dumbledore."  
  
"Oh, Okay. If we can't switch tables want to sit by me at lunch?"  
  
"I guess."  
  
"Well, I'll have to see you later. I have to go somewhere for my free period."  
  
"Oh really? And where would you be going?"  
  
"Well, I have to go out to the quidditch field and practice. You know that."  
  
"Yeah, whatever. Bye."  
  
She watched him walk off and turned around. She knew she was far away from Malfoy, but decided to keep running anyway.   
  
The sun shone bright as she made her way up to stairs of the stands at the quidditch field. She pulled out her guitar and started strumming the strings gently, letting each note linger in the air.   
  
******  
  
"Shampoo. Hey, Shampoo! Wake up!" Shampoo looked up groggily as Meilin shook her from her peaceful slumber.  
  
"What? What do you want?" She huffed.   
  
"Class is almost over! If the professor catches you, You're going to be in so much trouble!" Meilin said, giving an exasperated sigh.  
  
Shampoo sat up in her chair and gave Meilin an evil look. She yawned and stared boredly around the room. Professor McGonagall was talking endlessly about how to turn roaches into footrests, not paying the least bit of attention to her. Shampoo looked at the clock and saw that she had fifteen more minutes of class left. She pulled out a small piece of parchment and looked around. Misty and Angel had their eyes towards McGonagall, looking for some kind of appraise. Rachel sat in the back row, in the seat farthest away from Shampoo, Painting her nails under the desk. Stephanie was reading a magazine under her desk, carefully making sure McGonagall had her head turned. Shampoo found Missy sitting in the middle row, staring blankly at the wall. Shampoo smiled and ripped off a piece of parchment, and rolled it up into a tiny ball. She flicked it at Missy, hitting her in the head. She turned around abruptly, her thin wavy hair fanning out. She gave Shampoo a look and turned back around. She turned back around and Shampoo threw another piece of parchment at her. Missy caught it and opened it up, Laughing at what it had said. She scribbled something else down on the parchment and threw it back. Shampoo snorted and gave her a thumbs up.  
  
"What was that all about?" Meilin whispered.  
  
"Oh nothing, Just who we think will get married first." Shampoo laughed, crumbling up the piece of parchment.  
  
"Married?"   
  
"Yes, married."  
  
"Oh, really? Who were the choices?"  
  
Shampoo cracked up and Meilin wrenched the parchment from her hands before Shampoo could stop her.  
  
She read over the names, which consisted of Lily and James and her and Sirius. She crinkled it up and forced a laugh.  
  
"Who said we were going to get married? It's not really any of your business anyway." She stopped and turned around in her seat. "Shampoo, remind me to kill you after class."  
  
******  
  
Selena watched as her friends finished their dinner, laughing and joking with one another. She shook her head and stood up.  
  
"I'm going to bed. I've had a long day." She walked off, everyone staring at her. She walked quickly to the Slytherin dungeons where she could lay and unwind. She walked into her dorm where two of her friends where sitting playing a game of cards.  
  
"What are you playing?" She asked, stopping to watch.  
  
"Poker." Lizzy said, pushing back her blonde hair.  
  
"Muggle poker?"   
  
"Yup."  
  
"What are you doing here anyway, Lizzy?" She asked, confused. Her other friend Melody sat on the floor, holding her cards in one hand and brushing her auburn hair with the other. Melody was always in the dorm during dinner. She was an anorexic and often suffered from bulimia.   
  
"Well," Lizzy said, making another move. "I am becoming a vegetarian, So I decided I will stay here because the only thing edible in here are carrots and chocolate."   
  
"Yes, and starve in the process." Melody said meekly.  
  
"You would be the one to talk." Lizzy shot back.  
  
Selena rolled her eyes and sauntered over to her bed. She lay down and rolled over on her stomach. She looked down at the black sheets which covered her bed. Black was her favorite color but right now her life seemed black. She lay there for an hour or so when the rest of her dormmates came back. They all started doing their own separate personal things when a knock came at the door. Lizzy strolled over to the door and opened it.   
  
"Can I help you?" She sneered at the person. "And why would you be here?" She laughed when the person responded. She turned around and stared at Selena, her brown eyes glittering with amusement. "Selena, you have a visitor." She shut the door so that Selena couldn't see who it was. "He's cute, too." She walked back to where Melody sat and started another game of poker.  
"Who in the..." She stopped short when she saw who was waiting at the door. "Oh no. I refuse..." She turned around to go back inside when he closed the door.  
  
"Long time no see, Selena." Lucius Malfoy grinned, watching her move around like a trapped ant.   
  
"What do you want?" She asked, exasperated and tired.  
  
"Well, as we both know, They are holding the Yule Ball at Christmas this year. I would like to have you come with me."  
  
Selena's heart stopped. She turned around.   
  
"You want me to come with you? I mean, There are a lot more girls who are better looking than me, and still you choose me of all?" She had a note of disbelief in her voice.   
  
"That's right."  
  
"I.. I..."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Fine. I'll do it. But you have to stop following me around."   
  
"One thing before I let you go," He smiled greasily and bent over, kissing her on the cheek. "Goodnight, Selena." He walked off, leaving her standing there.  
  
"Oh my God," she murmured, her hand on her cheek. "I don't believe it. I don't believe that just happened." She opened the door slowly to find everyone staring at her. She didn't care. She walked slowly over and sat on her bed. She took a few deep breaths and screamed.  
  
******  
  
"What was that?" Shampoo asked, flicking her tail.  
  
"What?" Meilin turned to stare at the cat as they walked down the corridor.  
  
"I heard someone screaming."  
  
"You're hearing things."  
  
"You're probably right."  
  
They continued to walk down the corridor, talking about boys.  
  
******   
  
Meilin pulled the egg out of its resting place in her trunk. She had gotten it three months ago. It should hatch any day now. She suddenly remembered the major quidditch game against the Gryffindors and the Hufflepuffs. She frowned slightly and placed the egg back into the blanket. She met up with Selena in the hallway and walked with her to the field, Shampoo tagging along behind her. Shampoo meowed and jumped onto Meilin's shoulder. They found Lily, who was saving them a seat among the huge crowd. The were in the 11th row, some of the best seats there were.   
  
"Thanks so much Lily!" Selena squealed. She plopped down on one side of Lily, leaving the other for Meilin. Shampoo returned to a human from and sat down. She stood up instantly as if a snake had bitten her.   
  
"Hey Peter!" Shampoo called, waving her arms madly.  
  
Peter caught site of her and moved over towards them. He sat on the other side of Selena.  
  
"Where's Remus?" Shampoo asked, disappointed.  
  
"We can tell you never stay awake during games, can you? Remus is commentator!" Meilin cried in disbeleif.  
  
"Oh," She looked down at her feet. The game started and Hufflepuff quickly took the lead. Later in the game all Gryffindor needed to beat them would be the Snitch.  
  
"Guys! We have to do something!" Meilin cried out.  
  
"Yeah, but what?" Shampoo said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"I've got an idea..." Meilin smiled.   
  
They ran towards the locker room, entering quickly.  
  
******   
  
"I don't think we're going to win!" Sirius called to James as he passed him. James wasn't paying attention to him, but instead, at the locker room. Everyone playing stopped to see what was going on as four girls in matching skirts and tube tops came onto the field.  
  
"It seems a group of girls have come onto the field," Remus commented. The girls all stopped in the middle of the field and started chanting.  
  
"I'm sassy, I'm cute, I'm popular to boot," Meilin chanted, taking a step forward.  
  
"I'm pretty, I'm cool, I dominate this school," Lily followed, standing next to Meilin. They now had all of the quidditch players attention, along with the professors and the crowd.  
  
"Who am I? Just guess, Guys want to touch my chest!" Selena jumped to meet them, her hair blowing along with the snow in the wind.  
  
"I'm bitchin', great hair. Men all love to stare!" Shampoo concluded, joining them.  
  
"Hey just cause we're beautiful but we don't like you either, we're cheerleaders, hey hey, cheerleaders!!" They shouted in unison. Meilin ran forward, leaving the other three to keep on chanting.  
  
"James, Go get that snitch! We're not out here freezing and showing our butts off for nothing!" She called against the wind. James looked around and noticed everyone seemed to be in a trance, all watching them chant. He looked around and saw a glint of gold, which he dived after immediently. He caught it in his hands and waved it. It took a few moments for everyone to notice because they were watching the cheerleaders.   
  
"And James Potter catches the snitch!" Remus called into the microphone. The crowds went wild and the cheerleaders broke into another cheer.  
  
"Oh Potter, Your So Fine. Your So Fine You Blow My Mind! Hey Potter, Hey Hey Hey Potter!!!" They chanted. The crowds cheered louder. The girls bowed and Meilin almost tackled Sirius as he got off his broom.  
  
"Well, That's one way to win a game." He said cheerfully.  
  
"Yes, and don't expect us to do it again. I'm freezing my butt off out here." She said. "Oh and congrads on the win."   
  
Unexpectedly he grabbed her and hugged her.   
  
"Without you girls we couldn't have done it." He said, smiling.  
  
"Save it for the honeymoon you two." Shampoo teased, laughing.  
  
"As I have asked a hundred times now, who says we're getting married?" Meilin asked.  
  
"The world."  
  
The girls walked off, leaving Sirius and Meilin in the falling snow.   
  
"You better change before you get sick." Sirius commented.  
  
"You're right, but do I look like I care?" She spun around, catching a few snowflakes on her tongue.  
  
"Meilin, If you weren't a minor I would say you're drunk."   
  
"Who says I'm not?"  
  
"You're joking, right?"  
  
"Yes, I'm joking. You're right, I should go change."  
  
She bounded off in the direction the other girls had went, leaving Sirius standing there.  
  
******  
  
Meilin ran into her dorm and threw open the trunk. She screamed in delight. The egg was cracking, and slowly a little baby dragon popped out of the egg, It's lavender eyes meeting hers. It pulled itself fully out of the shell and fell over, making Meilin laugh. She picked it up and it barely took up one whole hand. It's pink scales reflected in the light. It stretched it's wings and rolled over, it's stomach and the bottom of it's wings purple.  
  
"Oh, You are so adorable!" Meilin cooed.  
  
"Who are you talking to?" A cold voice behind her asked.   
  
Meilin turned around and gasped. 


	5. Dreams, Secrets, and the Ball

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!  
  
  
Chapter 5: Dreams, Secrets, and the Ball   
  
"Shampoo!" she cried out in alarm, slamming the trunk lid closed.  
  
"What are you doing?" Shampoo asked, giving her a strange look.   
  
"Oh nothing, just reading something to myself." She faked a smile. Shampoo raised an eyebrow.   
  
"Okay . . . I won't even ask." She plopped on her bed, opened a book, and started to read intently.   
  
Meilin looked to see if she was paying attention. After making sure that she wasn't, Meilin quickly grabbed the dragon and set it in her backpack. She zipped it so that it was almost closed but left a gap so the dragon could breath. She then ran quickly out the door to go to Hagrid's cabin. When she got out on the grounds she took the dragon out of her bag.   
  
"You need a name," she said to it, looking deep into its eyes. It stared lovingly as if it thought she was its mother. She had sort of expected it to grow attached to her. What she hadn't expected, though, was that she would grow so attached to it.   
  
"Let's see," she thought aloud. "I want to name you after something that has to do with astronomy so . . . Comet? No, that doesn't sound right." She looked thoughtfully down upon it. "Luna? No, that sounds like something you would name a cat. I know, I'll name you Star." She smiled, and stroked the dragon's scaly head. It rubbed against her hand affectionately.   
  
Meilin entered Hagrid's cabin and looked around. "Hagrid?" she called out, putting the dragon down on the floor. "He must be around the back." She went outside and found him in his pumpkin patch.   
  
"Hello," he said cheerfully.   
  
"Hi." She smiled. "Well, it hatched."   
  
"And where is it?"   
  
"It's inside. Should I go get it?"   
  
"Yeh, go ahead."   
  
Meilin skipped inside and picked up the baby dragon. She walked back outside and presented it to Hagrid. He picked it up and stroked it a couple times. It stared at him blankly, stretching its wings.   
  
"Well, what do you think?" Meilin asked.   
  
"It's cute," he admitted. "What's its name?"   
  
"Star."   
  
"Are you sure yeh can handle taking care of it? It can be a lot of work."   
  
"Yes." She nodded. "I'm going to do my best."   
  
Meilin left Star with Hagrid and walked back to her dorm. She looked around. Her dorm was a mess! She stood up and hit her head on the top bed rail. She sighed and noticed that Shampoo was sleeping in a corner of the room.   
  
"Shampoo," she said, prodding her with a finger. "Wake up."  
  
"What?" Shampoo asked, rubbing her eyes groggily.   
  
"We are going to clean this dorm. It's a pigsty."   
  
"Okay. Wake me when you're done." She yawned and lay back down.   
  
"Shampoo!" Meilin scoffed. She looked around and started picking things up, anything between lamps, cards, bags, and clothes. You could definitely tell that the owners of this room were girls, but were they female pigs? Meilin sighed. It was hopeless. If she cleaned it up they would just mess it up again. A few seconds later the door opened and Missy strolled in.   
  
"What are you doing?" she asked, watching Meilin shovel things out from under her bed.   
"Well, I am cleaning this room up." She pulled herself out from under the bed. "Care to join me?"   
  
"I suppose so." Missy went over to Stephanie's bed, the messiest of them all. She started to throw stuff from under the bed into Stephanie's trunk, dresser, and other small places. In about two hours, their dorm looked like no one lived in it, except the sleeping Shampoo in the corner.   
  
"I think we did a good job," Meilin commented.   
  
"Yes, we did," Missy agreed.   
  
"Let's wake Shampoo up and go down to dinner."   
  
"Let's do that, but in reverse order. You snooze, you lose." They laughed and started down the stairs to the Great Hall.   
  
******   
  
Shampoo awoke slowly, taking a few minutes to rest her eyes. She was still incredibly sleepy. She opened her eyes and first took note of the clock. Dinner was halfway over! She raised her hand to push back her bangs and found a note taped to it. She unfolded it, and read it aloud to herself: You snoozed and didn't help, so we are letting you miss dinner! It was signed by Meilin and Missy. Shampoo jumped up and ran down the corridor into the Great Hall. Some startled students wondered how she had gotten there so quickly in the first place. She crossed the room to the table where Meilin and Missy sat, eating some type of pudding.   
  
"Oh crap!" Missy exclaimed when she saw Shampoo stomping over. "Meilin, RUN!" The two got up from the table and ran in separate directions. Missy ran over to the Slytherin table to join Selena, while Meilin ran and hid behind Sirius.   
  
"Hi!" she said when she had reached him. "Hope you don't mind if I stay over here while Shampoo-zilla is letting out her wrath."   
  
"No, we don't mind," James joked. "But even if we did mind it's never stopped you before." Meilin stuck her tongue out at him and looked around. Shampoo wasn't anywhere to be found. Then she turned directly around to find an evil looking Shampoo staring at her.   
  
"Uhh . . . Hi?" Meilin smiled nervously.   
  
"You were just going to let me starve by sleeping through dinner, weren't you?" Shampoo glared at her.   
  
"Umm . . . No. But Missy had a good argument as to why we should let you keep sleeping." Shampoo paused, but couldn't seem to think of a comeback, so she stalked off to find Missy.   
  
"What's she so mad about anyway?" Peter asked.   
  
"Well, she didn't help us clean so we wrote her an evil note." Meilin put on an evil little smirk. "I'm such a little devil."   
  
"Oh. And what did this note say?" Remus piped up.   
  
"Weeelll . . ." Meilin smiled. "It said that she snoozed, so she got to lose out on dinner."   
  
"Sometimes you cease to amaze me," Remus sighed.   
  
******   
  
Sirius climbed into his bed after turning off the light. He quickly fell asleep, and began having a strange dream . . .   
  
He was standing in a dark, pitch-black room that smelled of pine trees. But further away from him was a little girl. She was wearing a type of clothing that he had never seen before, even on muggles. It looked like something from the future by the types of designs on it. The little girl's hair looked like some type of messy odangos, except they were down further than they should be and looked like she hadn't brushed them in a while. Her eyes were deep blue, like the ocean. In fact, she looked like Meilin. Sirius looked down at himself. He looked a little older, but otherwise, the same. He looked up at the girl and she noticed him.   
  
"Daddy!" she called out. "Daddy!"   
  
Sirius couldn't say anything; his mouth wasn't working. The little girl cried out a few more times and fell to the ground weeping.   
  
"Daddy!" she cried. "Daddy!"   
  
Two men came and hauled her away. She was still crying out loudly, her voice carrying in the breeze.   
  
That was when Sirius noticed the man standing next to him. Finally getting his mouth to work, he turned to the man.   
  
"Who was that little girl?" he asked.   
  
"That was your daughter, Skuld," he answered, a shocked look on his face. "You don't remember her either, I suppose?"   
  
Sirius shook his head. That girl had so much looked like Meilin. "Where is her mother?" he asked.   
  
"Lady Meilin is a servant. She works for the Empress."   
  
Sirius was right. No wonder she looked like Meilin.  
  
"Where are they taking her?" he asked sharply.   
  
"To be killed, of course."   
  
That was when he woke up. He looked around and then glanced at Peter's wristwatch, which was on the dresser. It read 4:35 A.M. He stood up and walked out of the room, going to get some fresh air. He decided that he needed to tell Meilin about his dream. After all, she would probably know what this was all about. He walked to the portrait that led into the Ravenclaw tower, giving it the password Meilin had given him just in case. He slipped in, and went over and knocked on the door to Meilin's dorm. Her dorm mates were probably going to kill him, but at the moment he didn't care. He heard a bed squeak as someone came to open the door. Stephanie opened the door slowly.   
  
"Who do you wish to talk to? We're all awake thanks to a certain someone." She glared in the other direction, and for the first time, Sirius noticed sweet violin music in the air. She held open the door for him to come in and he saw that everyone indeed was up. The twins had their heads buried under pillows, but Shampoo was the only one who was actually sleeping, stretched out across her bed. Missy was sitting and staring at the wall, Rachel was writing avidly in a notebook, Stephanie was sitting on her bed and Meilin was playing her violin, keeping them all awake.   
  
"My hero! Please tell me you've come to save me from this evil torture," Stephanie whined.   
  
"No, actually, I came to talk to Meilin," he said quietly.   
  
"Sirius?!" Meilin jumped in surprise, throwing her violin in the air. Stephanie dove to catch it, barely reaching it before it hit the ground. Meilin hadn't seen him come in. "What are you doing here?" she asked curiously.   
  
"I wanted to talk to you. Would you like to go for a walk?" he asked.  
  
"I guess so." Meilin grabbed her wand from the dresser. She was already wearing normal clothes and not pajamas, so she didn't need to change. They walked outside together, and when they stopped to take a break Meilin yawned. "What did you want to talk about, Sirius?" she asked gently, sitting in the grass.   
  
"Well, Meilin, you can properly decipher dreams, right?" he asked, joining her on the ground.   
  
"Yes. I was trained to do it when I got my pipe."   
  
"Well, I had a strange dream. I was standing in this place and some feet away from me was a little girl. She kept calling out to me, calling me Daddy. I didn't know what to think. I asked this guy next to me who she was and he said that she was . . ." Before he could finish Meilin interrupted him.   
  
"What was her name? Please tell me, I need to know," she said urgently.   
  
"The little girl's name was Skuld, I think . . ."   
  
"I had the same dream but it was a little different." Meilin spoke softly. "Go ahead, finish."   
  
"Well, he said that the girl was our daughter, but before I could do anything some men came and took her to be killed."   
  
"Yes, my dream was like that too." She frowned and ripped up a piece of grass, shredding it strand by strand. "Only I was inside some kind of house . . . I was a servant, I think . . . The guard kept saying my amnesia was getting stronger, but I could think clear thoughts and remember everything: my name, my job, everything but this little girl who was crying out on the streets. I had stopped to watch, and then I asked the guard, but he slapped me and said that I wasn't supposed to talk. I watched other men carry the girl away to be killed. One of the other servants came and told me that the girl was my daughter. I couldn't believe it, and I wouldn't. But then the dream faded and I woke up." She sighed a long, frustrated sigh and looked up at him, her blue eyes gleaming in the night.   
  
"What do you think it means?"   
  
"Well . . ." She thought hard, and seemed to be wondering how to put it. "I don't think that was a dream. I think that was a message, possibly from the future."   
  
"You're kidding, right?"  
  
"No, I am not. I believe that something will happen that will end in some terrible way if we don't stop it."   
  
"Yeah, sure. But what can we do?"   
  
"I do not know."   
  
They sat there for a long period of time; the silence was deafening.   
  
"Meilin," Sirius said eventually, making her look up. "I have something else I want to ask you."   
  
"Yes?" She closed her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder. For a moment he wasn't sure what to do.   
  
"Well, I want to know if . . ." He hesitated for a moment. "Will you go to the ball with me?"   
  
There was a long pause, as if she was preparing to slap him.   
  
"I don't know," she muttered shyly. "I can't dance very well."   
  
"That's okay, you should just try your best."   
  
"Are you sure you want to take me?"   
  
"I've thought about this almost all year."   
  
"Really? Time does fly . . ." She paused and gazed into his eyes. "You know what? I really would like to go. In fact, I was hoping you would ask me in the first place."   
  
He couldn't believe it. Meilin stood up and wiped off her kimono.  
  
"It's cold out here," she said. "Want to go get some hot chocolate?"   
  
"Okay."   
  
They walked off to get some hot chocolate together, laughing about things other people had said.  
  
******   
  
Meilin sighed. She only had a few more days until the dance. All of her friends had gotten dates, and most even had their dresses. She jumped when she heard a knock on her door. She opened it quickly, only to find Selena and Shampoo grinning evilly.   
  
"What did you do now?" Meilin asked.   
  
"Nothing, but we have an idea." Shampoo smiled even wider.   
  
"Do you want to go find a dress for the dance with us?" Selena asked.   
  
"I guess so. But what about Lily?"   
  
"She couldn't come. She said that she already has her dress. And she has to practice that song for our gig."   
  
The three walked together to the passageway to Hogsmeade, making sure no one was near. They wandered around the village and finally stopped at an old dress shop. Meilin, Selena, and Shampoo cautiously went in, looking for someone to jump out and cut their heads off. An old woman was bustling busily in the back of the shop, fussing with a tall girl wearing a simple green dress.   
  
"You're done now," the witch said, pointing the girl towards the dressing rooms. "Go change." She looked up and saw the girls standing in the front of the shop.   
  
"Excuse me," Selena said curtly. "We are interested in buying some dresses."   
  
"Look around and see if you find any you like. If you do, let me know."  
  
The three girls decided that they wanted dresses that were similar. They spread out around the store and began to look at different styles. Finally Meilin found three similar dresses that were the same style with different colors and designs embroidered on them. She pulled them off the rack and showed them to Shampoo and Selena, who quickly agreed.   
  
"Who gets what color?" Shampoo asked, eying the red dress with the silver dragon embroidered at the bottom.   
  
"I think Meilin should take the blue one. It goes with her hair better," Selena suggested, pointing at a blue dress with a moon and three stars embroidered at the bottom.   
  
"I think Shampoo will kill if she doesn't get that red one," Meilin laughed.   
  
"Well, that's good. I wanted the black one anyway," Selena said, holding the black dress with the red rose on it up to herself.   
  
"Did you girls find something you like?" the lady asked. The girls nodded, paid for the dresses and quickly hurried out of the shop.   
  
"Who are you going with, anyway, Meilin?" Selena asked.  
  
"Well, Sirius Black asked me to go with him, and well, I agreed," Meilin responded, blushing.   
  
"You two make a cute couple!" Shampoo teased.   
  
"Hey, who are you going with, Shampoo?"   
  
"I'm going with Remus," Shampoo bragged.   
  
"Oh really? And did he agree to it?" Meilin asked.  
  
"Well . . . no."   
  
"I figured."   
  
"Who is your date, Selena?" Shampoo smiled mischievously.   
  
"Promise not to make fun of me?"   
  
"We promise."  
  
"Well . . . luciusmalfoy." She said quickly.   
  
"Who?" the two said in unison.   
  
"Lucius Malfoy."   
  
The two started cracking up and Selena quickly smacked them.   
  
"You promised!"   
  
"You're right," Shampoo agreed, still giggling.   
  
******   
  
Selena looked at her clock. She still had a few hours left until the feast before the dance. Then she, Meilin, Shampoo, and Lily were going to perform live on the stage. She sighed. This was going to be the longest two hours of her life. 


	6. A Musical Food Fight

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I wnat to chack it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!   
  
Chapter 6: A Musical Food Fight   
  
Meilin sat down on the cold floor of her dorm. Two hours until dinner. In a way, she wondered what the boys were doing. Letting curiosity take its toll, she went to find Lily. The rest of the girls in her dorm were doing their hair, talking, and gossiping. Meilin sighed and walked out the door, closing it silently behind her.   
  
******   
  
Shampoo awoke slowly and sat up. She looked at the clock next to her and cursed under her breath. She had only 30 minutes to get down to dinner, which meant she had to hurry. She ran into the bathroom and brushed her hair, changed shirts and put on a pair of capris. Satisfied with her appearance, she ran out the door and down the steps on her way to the Great Hall. When she reached her destination she went to a deserted part of the hall. Ten or fifteen minutes later Meilin and Lily entered, joking around. She waved her hands in the air, catching their attention.   
  
"Hey Shampoo," Lily greeted her, sitting down. Her capris matched Shampoo's exactly. Meilin dusted some dirt off of her capris, which were jean with red trim.   
  
"Yo," Shampoo replied, twirling a lock of her hair.   
  
"I can't wait until this is over," Meilin grumbled. She rubbed the goose bumps on her arm, her teeth chattering. "This is not how I planned to spend my Christmas Eve. All I wanted to do was dance under the stars, not start a battle of the bands."   
  
"Would you stop complaining?" Selena asked, joining them. "Hey girls."   
  
"What's up, Selena?" Shampoo asked, pulling a rubber bouncy ball out of her pocket and bouncing it as high as she could.   
  
"Nothing, unless you count the fact that I'm starving." Like the rest of them, she matched Meilin. Her baby blue halter top had the word "Dream" printed on it. She had her curly red hair pulled up by tiny hairclips.   
  
Shampoo stood up and looked around at the collecting groups at the tables. "Where are those boys anyway?" she asked, pulling out a pair of designer omnioculars. She turned but instead of seeing people, she saw a huge pair of blue eyes staring at her. She jumped in surprise, knocking over her chair and causing everyone to crack up.  
  
"James, I'm gonna kill you." She sat up, rubbing her back. "That hurt."   
  
"Hi Sirius." Meilin stood up and moved down a seat so he could sit with her.   
  
"What's with you girls? Aren't you going to the dance?" Remus commented.   
  
"I thought you'd never ask!" Shampoo threw her arms around him. "I'd love to dance."   
  
"That's not what I was saying . . ." he stammered, making Shampoo frown.   
  
"Well," Lily started, taking a heap of potatoes, "it's kind of a surprise. But yes, we all have dresses. We'll just be showing up a little late."   
  
"Don't give away too much." Selena glanced around.   
  
"Do you have a date?" Peter asked, a note of hopefulness in his voice.  
  
"Sorry, taken," she murmured, glancing around. "Where is he?" She stamped her foot impatiently.   
  
"Yes!" Meilin shrieked suddenly. "I've got another wing!"   
  
"You have wings?" Peter echoed.   
  
"No," Meilin said, pulling her pipe from under her chair. "See, look." She pointed to six little silver wings carved into it.  
  
"If she had wings, she would be like that Greek messenger . . . What's his name?" Remus wondered aloud.   
  
"Hermes?" Lily and Meilin asked simultaneously.   
  
"Yeah! Him! You'd be like Hermes!" Remus laughed.   
  
"I'm sorry, but I'm not Greek, I don't have wings, and I'm not a god. But I do have a strange liking for sheep," Meilin said thoughtfully. The guys looked puzzled.   
  
"Let's see. One sheep, two sheep, three sheep, four sheep, five sheep . . . Well, I thought something would happen, but nothing happened, so I started counting sheep again."  
  
"I think she's lost it," James suggested.   
  
"One sheep, two sheep, three sheep, four sheep, five sheep, six sheep," she continued.   
  
"Would you shut up?" Shampoo asked, annoyed.   
  
"Seven sheep, eight sheep, nine sheep." She ignored Shampoo.   
  
"Meilin, please," Sirius said, aggravated with the whole idea.   
  
"Okay!" Meilin chirped, and stopped talking. As a matter of fact, she didn't say anything until Shampoo kicked her chair and made her fall onto Sirius's lap.   
  
"Umm . . . Sorry." She blushed and shot Shampoo a devilish look. Shampoo snickered and turned to talk to Remus.   
  
Shampoo leaned over the table to Meilin, who was eating a salad. "Meilin! Pss! Meilin!" she whispered. Meilin glanced up, setting her fork down.   
  
"Yes?" she managed to say through a mouthful of salad.   
  
"I think Peter really likes Selena . . ." She stopped short and almost choked.   
  
"What?" Meilin turned around. So did Sirius, who had been watching them. The guys started laughing, causing Selena to give them an evil look. She ran over to Malfoy, who had just entered.   
  
"Don't tell me you're going to dance in that?" he scoffed at her.   
  
"No," Selena responded dreamily.   
  
"I can't believe she is going with Lucius!" Peter howled. Remus nodded, laughing too hard to speak.   
  
"That's more than you can say, Peter!" Shampoo hissed.   
  
"I wouldn't be talking, Miss Hair Care Product." He stuck his tongue out and just dodged Shampoo's hand.   
  
"I'm going to really hurt you, you, you, rat you!" Shampoo tried to smack him again, but instead smacked James, who not only joined the fight but also turned it into a food fight. Meilin moved her head before she got hit by some flying Jell-O. Instead, it hit Lucius straight in the face. Selena's face turned an angry red.   
  
"That's it!" she called. "Now you've gone too far!" Taking a handful of food, she hurled it through the air. Unfortunately, she had very bad aim, and it hit Severus Snape. "Oops! I did it again!"   
  
"That's a nice look for you, Severus!" Shampoo cackled, hitting Peter with some cake.   
  
"Let's get out of here while we still can!" Meilin laughed, taking Sirius by the hand. She led him into the hall where they could watch without being hit. The professors had noticed the commotion and were doing their best to stop it, which wasn't helping very much. McGonagall had gotten hit a couple times before she actually made any progress at all.   
  
"Umm . . . Meilin?" Sirius said, his attention not on the food fight, but on something else.   
  
"Mm? Yes?" She turned away from the door.   
  
He pointed up and she laughed.   
  
"You're joking right?" she said. "I mean, that isn't... is it?"   
  
"I'm pretty sure it is." He chuckled. "You know the legend about mistletoe, right?"   
  
"Just because I'm oriental doesn't mean I don't know anything, if that's what your saying."  
  
"Did anyone ever tell you that you're cute when you are mad?" He laughed again, making her smile.   
  
"Yes, I guess I am. Shampoo makes me practice it every day," she joked. She walked over to him, and with one look at the mistletoe, made a move to kiss him. Suddenly she slipped, falling on the floor.   
  
"God dammit," she cursed. "Shampoo!"   
  
"Hi!" Shampoo giggled. "And what would you two be doing out here?" An evil smirk came across her face.   
  
"None of your business," Meilin retorted, straightening out her shirt.   
  
"Well, I came to tell you it's show time," Shampoo said, opening the door.   
  
"Sirius," she said, turning around to face him, "I will be able to dance with you in about thirty minutes, okay? If you want . . . You can watch." She winked and raced after Shampoo. He stood there, watching her leave. Slowly he went back into the Great Hall where a stage was now placed. Sirius frowned; the instruments that were waiting looked strangely familiar.   
  
"Hey Sirius!" James called to him.   
  
Sirius jogged over to him.   
  
"I see your girl ditched you, too," Peter commented.   
  
Professor McGonagall came up and introduced the band members, who called the group "Sugar". The lights dimmed and smoke came from somewhere on stage. The dance had officially started. James, Remus, Peter, and Sirius sat alone, watching the stage in interest. A soft song started, but suddenly got louder.   
  
"Every day I wake up to another day gone by. Nothing but the open road and the never ending why. Anything can happen yeah but nothing ever does. I try to change. It's kind of strange. Same as it ever was. But Look At Us," the girl with the guitar sang. Her voice sounded familiar, too. The smoke cleared around the girl to reveal Selena, and the boys watched as Peter's and Lucius's mouths fell open. Now this was different.   
  
"How Do I deal with you? How do I deal with me? When I don't even know myself, or what it is you want from me. How do I deal with love? How do I know what's real? When I don't even trust myself, or what it is I feel . . . How Do I Deal?" One of the girls in front of the microphone sang. Her voice was high, and carried above the murmurs of the dancing couples. Like Selena, the smoke cleared around her to reveal Lily.   
  
"Another night in the dark, I lay awake in bed. How am I supposed to dream with all the static in my head? I turn in all directions and I pray for some relief. What can I do but feel the weight I'm underneath? And grit my teeth." A third girl started, banging on her drums. Sirius already could tell by the voice who it was. The smoke cleared to reveal Meilin, exactly as Sirius had thought.   
  
Finally, only one girl was left. She sang into the microphone loudly and clearly. "How do I deal with you? How do I deal with me? When I don't even know myself, or what it is you want from me. How do I deal with love? Why do I have to choose? Everybody's telling me what the hell I have to do. How do I deal with us? How do I know what's real? When I don't trust myself or what it is I feel. How do I deal?" It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out this one. The accent gave Shampoo away. She repeated the verse again, and Meilin finished the song.   
  
"At night I lay in bed, with static in my head . . ." She sang as the song faded. They stopped and the boys started cheering. The girls bowed and Selena took the microphone. "Shall we continue, or do you want someone else?" She said over the cheers.   
  
The crowd roared their approval, and the girls quickly started up on a song called "3 Small Words". They sang straight for thirty minutes, until Meilin finally got her chance to speak at the mike. "I'm so sorry but we have to stop. We will be replaced by professionals. As much as we'd like to, we can't keep singing all night. After all, we have dates ourselves." She put it down and went backstage to change into her dress. A few minutes later the girls came back, each going towards their dates. Shampoo, being the only one who didn't have a date, sat down and watched. Lily ran over and leapt into James's arms, the hem of her light pink dress flowing. Meilin walked shyly over to Sirius and whispered something to him. It had obviously been funny, as they both started laughing. Selena and Lucius glided gently across the dance floor. Shampoo was almost jealous when she felt a tap on her back.   
  
"Leave me alo . . ." She stopped when she saw Remus.   
  
"May I have this dance?" he asked. Shampoo gaped, and almost tripped over herself. She was at a loss for words, so she just nodded. The walked over to a deserted corner of the dance floor and started dancing.  
  
******   
  
Meilin followed Sirius cautiously, as if expecting something out of the ordinary to happen. He dragged her to the middle of the dance floor.   
  
She stared at him. "What are you doing?" she asked.   
  
"Would you care to dance?" he wondered.   
  
"I can't dance . . ." Meilin sputtered.   
  
"Sure you can, but you have to try first." He moved and she reluctantly followed. Her step was as smooth as a professional's. After a couple songs she admitted to the fact that she was tired, but she wouldn't let him take her off the dance floor. Suddenly it was time for the spotlight dance.   
  
"This was what I was waiting for," she murmured, resting her head on his shoulder as they danced. 


	7. A Deathly Secret

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!! ALL NAMES BELONG TO ORIGINAL OWNERS!!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 7: A Deathly Secret  
  
Peter got tired of watching everyone else have a good time and grumpily walked off to a corner of the room to sulk. There he was confronted by two identical twins who were amusingly pretty. They both were smiling at him.  
  
"Hello." The one on the left said.  
  
"Um... Hi." Peter responded.  
  
"Would you like to dance with one of us?" The second giggled.  
  
"We noticed you didn't seem to have a date." They said in unison. "We don't either."  
  
They both laughed. "I'm Angel," the first one said.  
  
"I'm Misty." The other one followed.  
  
They looked at each other and said in unison,"Who are you?"  
  
"Peter." Peter responded. Was this some kind of evil joke? Yes, his friends were probably playing a joke on him. They knew he didn't have a date. And he had never seen these girls before.  
  
"Very funny." He muttered.  
  
"What's funny?" Misty asked, her voice was filled with innocent puzzlement.  
  
So they weren't in on a joke. He looked to Angel and then to Misty.  
  
"I'll dance with Angel for two dances and then you for two. Okay?" He asked.  
  
They nodded and Angel practically flung herself to him. As he had said, they danced two dances, and well, Peter was reluctant to let her leave. But he still had to dance with Misty, who was nothing like her sister. She was wild, loud, and well, seemed drunk. Or maybe hyper. Or both. He wasn't sure.   
  
******  
  
Meilin started fiddling around with the one small pocket in the side of her dress. Sirius had went to get something for them to drink, so she sat alone watching Lily and James dance together happily. She had stuck a magical mirror in her pocket. It was another one of her prized possessions; Whenever she was separated from her true love it would make itself into two so she would always be with them. However, it was stuck as one.  
  
"How long until I'm not just dreaming? How long until somebody cares? How long until I meet my angel? How long until I fall in love?" She asked it, a tear falling down her face. She gently put it back into her pocket, and found something else, something she hadn't put there. Before she could check it out, Sirius came back. She took the drink he offered her gratefully. She lay her head on his shoulder.  
  
"If you could have anything in the world, what would it be?" She asked sleepily.  
  
"I dunno... A girlfriend? A wife? A kid?" he hesitated. "I already have one of them." Meilin stared at him.  
  
"Oh I get it." She laughed. "For a moment I thought you were going to say a kid, then I would have smacked you." She shook her head and relaxed. She pulled out the object that was in her pocket.  
  
"Oh, wow." She said, looking at an ancient looking crystal ball. "I've never seen this before."  
  
Sirius blushed. He had put it there while she was performing after learning from Missy that she liked to do things with crystal balls and other fortune telling items. Missy had also told him she had a whole collection of crystal balls.   
  
"What do you see in it?" He asked. Meilin stared for a moment, and then let her eyes go back to the crystal ball.  
  
"I see myself in a cathedral, all dressed in white. That someone is willing and waiting to be there by my side. I don't where I'll find him, but I'm sure I will find him, somewhere out there, I know he's gonna make me happy." She finished. She stood up, and brushed off her dress. Then she sat back down and turned to him.  
  
"Thank you, Sirius." She said. "I really like it." She got up and twirled around. "It's stuffy in here. Would you like to join me outside?" She started to the door.  
  
"Sure." Sirius replied.  
  
******  
  
"Dumbledore, can I go yet?" A dark, messy haired little girl asked. She was sitting in midair, under an invisibility cloak.  
  
"I'm sorry, but you can't go yet." He said. He gave her a chocolate frog, which kept her momentarily amused.  
  
"But I'm tired of being here. Can't I go and have some fun?" she complained.  
  
"Skuld," He smiled. "I can't let you, or else you will create some kind of a paradox."   
  
"Okay." She moaned. Dumbledore went back to watching the young couples, keeping a close eye on Meilin and Sirius. He also watched Remus and Shampoo, who were arguing in the corner, Lily and James who were still on the dance floor, Peter, who was having quite a hard time with Angel and Misty, and finally, Lucius and Selena who were sitting and drinking punch.  
  
******  
  
Meilin and Sirius sat in the grass, overlooking the lake. Sirius absently played with a piece of Meilin's hair while she sat, staring at the stars. They sat like that for almost an hour, until Meilin started to get cold. She curled up to keep herself warm as a light snow started to fall. Meilin shivered and Sirius moved closer to her.   
  
"Do you want to go in?" He asked. She didn't answer, but moved closer to him. He put his arms around her a saw some kind of dark, black mark on her arm. He leaned over to get a better look, and to his surprise, saw the Dark Mark tattooed on Meilin's arm. He gasped, which caught Meilin's attention.   
  
"What?" She asked.  
  
"Oh my God..." He murmured, and got up. "You're a death eater?"  
  
Meilin looked at him and noticed what he saw.  
  
"It's not what you think." She tried to explain.  
  
"I'm sure it isn't."  
  
He walked off, leaving her in the falling snow.  
  
******  
  
"Are you sure she's a death eater? I mean, She seems so nice." Remus said at another animangi meeting.   
  
"Yes, I'm sure. I even saw the dark mark on her arm." Sirius said, his voice sounded depressed. Shampoo said nothing, but sat a little away from them. She turned her eyes away from the narrow window she was looking through.  
  
"It's not quite what you think." She said quietly. The boys jumped at her sudden response.   
  
"What do you mean? Are you one, too?" Peter asked, almost getting smacked by Remus.  
  
"Do you know anything about this, Shampoo?" Remus questioned her.  
  
"Yes," Shampoo choked. "It's nothing like you think."  
  
"Will you tell us, Shampoo?" James asked gently.  
  
"I don't know how she does it." Shampoo muttered. "After all that's happened to her she can still manage to smile and be friendly to everyone. Even after tonight, the first thing she did to me was smile." She stopped to take in a breath. "Ever since I can remember, Her parents have been cruel. They are Voldemort's biggest supporters, and even before he was at large, they studied dark arts. Meilin was one of the middle children of 14, so far. When she was 6, her parents took her to a death eater's convention. She became an official death eater, but her spirit never gave in to the darkness. Sure, she knew dark arts like the back of her hand. Her parents, instead of sending their children to Japan's best magical school, They sent them far away to Hogwarts. If their children didn't make it into Slytherin, they disowned them. That happened to a few of her brothers and sisters, and then her. I followed her to Hogwarts. She was cared for by Dumbledore. During the summer she stays here upon special request." Shampoo drew in another shaky breath. "She isn't evil. Not at all. But she's never had any real friends but Lily and I. She's rather lonely. Selena's there for her, but Selena has a weird personality. She was overjoyed when she became friends with you guys. She actually felt like she was wanted around. She can't change her past, so you'll just have to deal with her." Shampoo finished.  
  
"So she's a death eater against her will?" Remus asked.  
  
"Yes, that about sums it up." She looked towards the door. "I'm tired and I'm going to bed. I will see you tomorrow." She brushed past them and in a puff of pink smoke, a tiny black cat with huge eyes bounded out of the door.  
  
******  
  
Meilin sat quietly on her bed, her cheeks wet from crying. She thought about how everything had been so perfect, It was all so perfect until Sirius had found out. She sighed as Shampoo clawed her way into the dorm and jumped onto the bed. She purred and rubbed up against Meilin's hand. Meilin smiled sadly, and stroked Shampoo's fur.   
  
"Shampoo, thanks for being such a good friend." She hugged Shampoo closely.  
  
"Your choking me," Shampoo croaked. 


	8. Becoming an Animangi

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 8: Becoming an Animangi  
  
Meilin awoke early Christmas morning to the sound of paper being ripped off boxes. She blinked and stared at the ceiling, finally managing to pull herself up.  
  
"What day is it?" She asked groggily.  
  
"Christmas." Rachel said cheerfully.  
  
"Are you okay? You don't look so well," Stephanie commented.  
  
"I'm okay." She said. Really she didn't feel good. She blinked a few more times before she noticed the humungus pile of presents at the bottom of her bed. The pile was larger than her bed.   
  
"Shampoo?" She asked. "Could you do me a favor after you're done?"  
  
"What?" Shampoo asked, opening a present that was in a long box. She opened the lid and almost every kind of candy you could imagine was in that box. "Memo to me to be nice to Peter." She murmured, eying the chocolate. She turned back to Meilin.  
  
"Well, I would like you to deliver some presents for me." She replied. Shampoo stared in puzzlement for a moment and finally caught on.  
  
"Okay, Sure." She turned back to her presents.   
  
Before Meilin opened hers, she pulled out the presents she had gotten everyone in her dorm. She passed them out quickly, and started on her pile. She looked around and finally decided on a medium sized package. The nametag said it was from Angel and Misty. Inside was a pewter dragon that was next to a nest of eggs. Meilin sat it down and chose another, which was from Hagrid. He had sent her favorite chocolates; Chocolate Frogs! She forced herself to put the frogs down when she noticed a note stuck inside the box. She pulled it out and read it carefully.  
  
Meilin-  
I need your help with Star today.  
Merry Christmas!  
Hagrid  
  
She smiled and started on another present. She got a pack of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans from Rachel, A notebook from Stephanie, A New cauldron from Missy (She was always complaining about her old one.), and other numerous things from her brothers, sisters, and friends. Finally she had only a few left. She picked up the smallest package left, which had no card or anything. She opened it and out fell a note, and a small heart-shaped crystal pendent with a dragon carved into it. She gasped, then picked up the note. Whoever had bought this had to be rich! The note said nothing but "Meet me at the top of the school at 12:00 a.m.". She frowned and set it on her dresser. She took another present out of the stack that was from Remus. Inside were two books; One on fortune telling and the other on dragons. She couldn't have been happier. She took one of the last remaining five packages. It was from Lily. Inside were assorted items of stationary, exactly like she wanted. The next present was a box of candy from Peter, exactly like Shampoo's. Next was Shampoo's present, which was a set of tarot cards, another crystal ball, and a book on predicting the future. She opened the last two, which were from James and Selena. She got a neat astronomy set from James and a set of muggle chess from Selena. She frowned. Nothing from Sirius.  
  
"No matter," She muttered to herself. She fell back onto her bed and let out a happy sigh. She'd never in a hundred years thought she'd have such good friends. She sat up again and watched her friends organize their presents onto the dressers and just about anywhere else they could fit them. She stared at her huge pile of presents and sluggishly got up, feeling as if all of her energy had been drained. She caught eyes with Shampoo, who stood sulkily by the door. Meilin bent down and pulled two large bags from under her bed, each looked as if they weighed 50 pounds. To Meilin it seemed like 200. She watched as Shampoo's jaw dropped.  
  
"You're kidding, right?" She said after a few minutes.  
  
"Please, Shampoo?" Meilin stared deep into Shampoo's green eyes. Shampoo opened her mouth to protest but decided against it.   
  
"Thank you so much!" Meilin called after Shampoo, then stuffing a chocolate frog in her mouth (hoping it would make her feel better), she changed out of her pajamas and through on her newest red silk kimono. As she was getting ready to leave she remembered the necklace, and running over to her bed, put it on. She ran out into the Ravenclaw common room, and through the portrait hole. She through the snow covered grounds and to Hagrid's cabin. She knocked loudly and stared at the Forbidden Forest, which looked enchanted. She heard the door open slightly behind her, and she heard Fang's booming barks. She followed Hagrid inside, where everything was warm due to a burning flame in the fireplace.   
  
"Meilin," Hagrid called from the kitchen.  
  
"Yes?" She sat down and petted Fang, who had his head in her lap.  
  
"Gotta ask yeh something." He said.   
  
"What is it?" She laughed as Fang jumped up and licked her.  
  
"I have to go and do some business for Dumbledore an' I will be gone a few days. That means you have to take care of Star for those few days."   
  
"Okay," She said. She had no clue how she was going to do it. Sneaking an illegal dragon in the school would get her in a lot of trouble... Not that she cared. She could always weasel her way out of trouble, in fact, it was one of her talents. She picked up the sleeping dragon and placed it into her bag. It yawned and curled it's tail more tightly around itself. She smiled absentmindedly to herself and walked back into the warm castle. Torches were making flames in them dance merrily, casting shadows on the wall. Before she could bask in the warmth of the castle something came speeding at her.   
  
"Woah!" She jumped, almost toppling over James, who had been running towards her.   
  
"Meilin, C'mon! We've got to have a meeting, and we've got to have it now!" He grabbed her wrist and attempted to drag her off.  
  
"Can't I go to my dorm real quick?" She whimpered, thinking quickly.  
  
"We don't have time!" He tugged on her wrist again, this time managing to pull her along.  
  
******  
"Wish he'd hurry," Shampoo growled, poking her wand into the blue waterproof flames Remus had conjured.  
  
"Would you stop complaining?" Peter grumbled as he stuffed a treacle tart in his mouth.  
  
"You pig," She chucked a small pebble at him across the flames. "You would eat the Empire State Building if it were made of cheese."  
  
"If the cheese eaters of America hadn't got there first." Remus joked.  
  
Shampoo shot him a nasty look that made him close his mouth. Sirius sat and watched, his head on his hands.   
  
"Perhaps I should go help James," He said after a few minutes went by. Nobody even glanced up as the doorway to their secret passage opened. James dragged Meilin in, who by the look on her face, had used every excuse to try to escape. She gave up and laid her bag down by the entrance, and went over to sit between Selena and Shampoo. Shampoo pulled out a slingshot and picked up a small stone.   
  
"Betcha I can hit the window up there." She said thoughtfully.  
  
"I suggest you don't. You'll give us away." Selena sighed as if her mind was elsewhere.  
  
"Meilin, Do you have the notebook?" James asked, pulling out a piece of parchment and a quill.   
  
"Yes," She got up to retrieve it out of her bag, but Peter blocked her way.  
  
"I'll get it." He said, reaching for her bag.  
  
"No, Don't!" She shouted, but it was too late. Flames shot out of the bag as Peter put his hand in. He cursed and yelled for a few minutes, and finally calmed down. Everyone's attention had been focused on Meilin.  
  
"What was that?" Peter demanded.  
  
"Umm... Well..." She could feel sweat running down her face. She had to think, and fast. "It was a..." She didn't answer. Remus had took a stick and began prodding the bag, trying to get whatever it was to come out. The bag fell onto it's side and out rolled Star.  
  
"I'm in so much trouble." Meilin muttered under her breath.  
  
"You own a dragon?! But that's against school rules!" Shampoo advanced on Meilin. She backed up and felt her back hit the cold stone wall.  
  
"And you should talk!" She heard herself reply back. She started to feel dizzy again.   
  
Not now, She thought. Not now ... but things were swimming in and out of focus. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back.   
  
Must focus... She could hear her thoughts fading in her head. Shampoo's voice became fuzzy, like an out of tune radio. Everything was fading, more and more by the second. Before she knew it, she had passed out again.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo frowned. Perhaps they should have took her to the hospital wing instead of back to the dorm... But if she had done that, They would find out about Meilin's secret. And that wouldn't have been good. She stared at the LED dispenser clock. It showed 11:40 p.m. in twenty minutes time Meilin would have went to meet who had sent her that note. Shampoo, along with almost the rest of their friends were aware of who it was. Only that person could be so crazy as to send Meilin an a thousand galleon necklace. Where he got the money, no one knew. But there was one thing Shampoo did know; Sirius was insane if he spent that much money on Meilin. But then, Shampoo had greater things to worry about. Like her birthday, which in 20 minutes time, would arrive. She never welcomed her birthday. In fact, with her age, It had to be a normal event. Just like any other day. The excitement had worn off. Other than that, there was the fact of Meilin. How long would this last? If it was fatal, she would have turned into original form already, wouldn't she? She pondered this a moment, staring at the ceiling.   
  
"I should give up," She said aloud. "It's really none of my business."   
  
Her only response was Stephanie's loud snores.   
  
******  
  
Meilin awoke at a little past 12. Pushing herself out of bed, she grabbed a candle and climbed the stairs to the highest astronomy tower. Placing the candle on the window sill, she pulled herself onto the roof of the school. Swaying a little, she walked slowly across the roof, looking for a sign of any human lifeform. But there was none to be found.   
  
I'm too late, she thought, they've already left.   
  
And it was true, they had already left. She clambered back down into the open tower window. Then, running quickly but silently, went back to the Ravenclaw common room, where she ran straight into Shampoo. Jumping back in surprise, she let out a small yelp.  
  
"It was Sirius, you know. He bought you that necklace with all of the money he practically owned, along with some he borrowed from James." Shampoo's voice was more like a cold drawl than anything else. Meilin didn't respond. Her gaze was transfixed on a small mantel clock.   
  
She grinned at Shampoo and pointed to the clock. "Happy 5,072nd birthday." Shampoo didn't look the least bit amused. Meilin was trying to hide her true feelings about what Sirius had done. But what were they? She pondered this, watching Shampoo climb back up the stairwell. She had gotten that same, fuzzy feeling she always got when she thought about him. It made her feel happy, as if nothing would ever harm her again. Not words, not people, not anything. Nothing would hurt her. She laughed at herself for being so foolish. Not even bothering to change, she curled up in an armchair and fell fast asleep.   
  
******   
  
"What's up with you?" Selena asked Peter the next day at breakfast. She shoved a sausage in her mouth as she spoke. Peter looked as glum as if someone just told him his worst enemy was going to live with him. He just groaned.  
  
"His sister is coming to Hogwarts." James said for him.   
  
"What's so bad about that?" Selena put a couple more sausages on her plate.  
  
"You don't know Celestina." Peter grumbled, looking more glum than before.   
  
Sirius entered the hall, looking as if he hadn't slept all night.   
  
"I'm warning you, he's in an irritable mood." Remus whispered to Shampoo, who had just got back from talking to Missy, who was sitting next to the rest of the few remaining Ravenclaw girls.  
  
"What's up?" She asked him, skewering her hair with a chopstick.  
  
"Nothing much." Sirius yawned, helping himself to some bacon. "How's Meilin?" He asked in a quieter tone.  
  
"Never knew you cared so much." Meilin chirped, making him jump. She laughed. It had taken her a while to get through the crowd of students (who had arrived back from their break) who had all decided to show up at breakfast at the exact same time.  
  
"Don't do that!" He made her laugh even more. Even James and Remus were laughing. Peter however, still was getting glummer by the minute. Before anyone could say anything else, the chatter in the hall had died down and Dumbledore took his seat, followed by two extremely pretty girls. One was a tall, slim, blonde girl who had her shoulder length hair in a messy style, with a T-shirt that had the word "Diva" written on it, and some fringed shorts. Her eyes were as blue as saphires, and looked almost like Peter's. The girl behind her was a little smaller, and had darker skin by far. She had long black hair, that could have passed for brown if it was the tiniest bit lighter. She had a tattoo of an eye on it, like you'd see in an old Egyptian pyramid. She had sparkling brown eyes that gleamed softly in the early morning light. Meilin's first response was a jackal. It was something about her face that made her look so much like a jackal. Dumbledore raised his hands for quiet. The whole group went even quieter than they had when he first came in. Dumbledore beamed at the students, and the silence continued.   
  
"Welcome back!" Dumbledore greeted. "Not only are we welcoming you back to another term, but also two new classmates." He turned around and looked at the two girls, and neither of them looked amused, but slightly bored and disappointed. The tall blonde strolled forward, and looked around.   
  
"Both of these girls have joined us from a school in Paris, France. I'll let these two tell you a little about themselves." The blonde looked as though she was scanning the hall for someone. Her stare fell upon the table they were sitting at. A grim smile crossed her lips.   
  
"Well," She began. "I am Celestina Pettigrew. Some of you might know my little brother, Peter." Her smile became wider. "Anyway, I'm a seventh year Gryffindor. And well, That's all I have to say."  
  
The second girl stepped forward, and she looked anything but friendly. Her eyes looked darker than they had been, as though she had remembered too many unpleasant things from her past. "I am Rebia Amural Re, a seventh year." She backed off, and refused to speak again.  
  
"I hope you welcome these two girls, and now onto our feast." The lukewarm applause for the girls had suddenly erupted into loud thunderous applause. Rebia, before taking her seat, spun around and did a couple of fast dance steps. She was extrodenary.   
  
"Think she's a gypsy?" Remus asked aloud, and clearly made a mistake. Rebia had overheard him and came over and backhanded him.  
  
"I am an Egyptian!" She screeched. (It's a good thing the Professors were too busy talking to notice, thought Meilin.) "I was born and raised in Egypt and that is where my soul will stay!" She thundered over and slammed a thick hardcover book on the table. Celestina had paused in the middle, and was now picking up some books of her own. Most, Meilin noticed, where thick notepads. Peter was staring at Celestina with an utmost hatred. She set her books down next to Rebia, and walked slowly over to where Peter was. She hugged him tightly.  
  
"Hey! What're you doing?!" He jumped up from his chair as if were on fire.  
  
"Is it so wrong of me to say hello to my baby brother?" She cooed, making Peter turn bright red.  
  
"Get off me!" He turned an even darker shade of red. She laughed, a flutey type laugh and walked off. "I really don't like her." He muttered under his breath.  
  
******  
  
Meilin tucked the notebook under her arm. She stirred the cauldron slowly, watching the purple chemical bubble slightly.   
  
"Tonight is the night," she said aloud to herself. "When the Marauders are finally animangis."  
  
She read over the list of ingredients again, double checking the recipe. She noticed, in fine print at the bottom, that you had to have a gentle heart and the spirit of an animal to become an animangi, and that the potion chose the animal you were most adapted to. She took a deep breath and lifted some of the purple concoction in the ladle and lifted it to her lips. She took a gulp, and after a few slow seconds she began to feel her body shrinking, becoming smaller than she had originally been.  
  
"Yes!" She cried out, but the words had changed into a hiss as she finished her transformation into a small, red scaled dragon. 


	9. Murder by Night

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
WARNING: THIS IS GETTING A LITTLE DARK!!!   
  
  
Chapter 9: Murder By Night   
  
"Yes!" Meilin cried. At last it was ready. She burst through the doors of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom and ran towards the direction of Gryffindor Tower.   
  
"It's finished!" She panted, bursting into the common room, where Sirius, James, Peter, Remus, Lily, Shampoo, and Selena were all enjoying themselves playing cards. They looked up and a smile crossed on Meilin's face.   
  
"Planning on becoming an unregistered animangi? Tisk, tisk. Perhaps I should tell Professor McGonagall?" A soft, dark voice said from atop the stairs leading to the girl's dorm.   
  
"Rebia, What's going on down there?" Another voice called from inside another dorm.   
  
"Nothing." Rebia muttered, then descended down the stairs. "You know, she already knows I'm an animangi." Rebia smiled, an evil, crazed smile. "Want proof? I'll show you." Rebia glowed, and strangely began to shrink. She changed into a small dog, but then, it wasn't a dog. It was more like... a jackal. Meilin gasped. It was a wonder Rebia looked so much like a jackal. The small canine's ears twitched, sensing every movement and sound. The nose twitched also, as if it had never been aware of so many different smells. The mouth was twisted in what looked like a smile, but when Meilin looked closer, it was growling. And it wasn't just growling at them all, it was growling at Sirius. The growl changed into a snarl and it stood up, coming up a little higher than Meilin's knees. But there was one thing that did make up for it's size; and that was it teeth.  
  
"Rebia! Rebia, Where-" A voice stopped at the stairs. "Oh, um..." Celestina cleared her throat. "Rebia, leave them alone and come here!" She called down the stairs. Rebia turned her head and bounded up the stairs and out of sight, into Celestina's dorm. The look on Peter's face suggested he could kiss her about now.   
  
"Meilin, Are you okay?" Sirius asked cautiously. Meilin noticed she was breathing a little harder than normal. She exchanged a look with Shampoo and nodded.   
  
"Yeah, You looked like you were going to pass out again." Remus agreed.  
  
Changing the subject, Meilin forced a smile. "Anyway, It's done."   
  
"Yes!" Peter and James exchanged whoops of joy and accidentally slammed into each other. Selena laughed at them, pulling Peter up.   
  
"Let's meet tonight at 9:00 in Myrtle's bathroom. Who wants to try it out first?" James asked, looking around.  
  
"I already tried it." Meilin said quietly.  
  
Shampoo got that look she always got when Meilin did something she didn't approve of. Meilin just shrugged her off.  
  
"What did you turn into?" Peter asked excitedly.   
  
"A..." A smile came to her lips as she prolonged the silence. "Dragon." Shampoo snorted. Lily gasped. James looked a little surprised. Peter didn't look the least bit amused. Remus rolled his eyes and went back to pick up the cards. Sirius' look was unreadable. This puzzled Meilin. What can he be thinking? she thought. I bet he doesn't like me... A wave of panic crossed her mind.   
  
"I better go," She said quickly, running out of the common room before anyone could stop her. She walked slowly and silently towards her common room, across the school. She entered and sank into a puffy armchair. Her thoughts were like a waterfall in her mind, all coming and going quickly, as though caught in a fast current.  
  
"Meilin?" A soft voice from upstairs startled Meilin.   
  
"Yes Missy?" Meilin asked, turning around.  
  
"How come you never want to talk to me anymore? I mean, it's always like 'No, I'm going to meet Sirius. I don't want to talk to you now.' and 'Get me this, get me that, I'm too busy, I don't want to hang out.'" Meilin could hear a faint trace of tears in Missy's voice. She was right. She had been rather mean to Missy lately.  
  
"I'm sorry-" She started but Missy cut in again.  
  
"No, I don't want to hear it. You aren't the least bit sorry, and you know it." Missy stormed off, leaving Meilin alone in the common room. She sighed. She wasn't having a good day. She climbed up the stairs and changed into a pair of pajamas. She lay down on her bed, pulling the covers above her head. She fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.   
  
******   
  
Meilin was awoke rudely by somebody shaking her.   
  
"What...?" She forced her eyes open.   
  
"It's almost nine! We've got to go!" Shampoo continued shaking her. She looked around. All of the girls we're doing their own separate things, including Missy, who was sitting in a circle of candles. She was chanting and rocking back and forth, making the flames flicker. All of the girls (except Missy) seemed to be getting ready to go somewhere. Shampoo grabbed Meilin's wrist and dragged her out the door and straight to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. All of the rest of the group was there, waiting eagerly. The thought of Missy was pulled out of Meilin's head as she was caught up in the excitement.   
  
"And now, Who will be the first to attempt the unknown?" Meilin asked in her best magician's assistant voice.   
  
James outbeat them all, jumping forward and almost tripping over Peter. She took out a small wine goblet and placed it in James' hands. She picked up the ladle and placed some of the warm potion into the goblet. James' eyes glowed with excitement as he watched her pour every last drop into the goblet. "Girl," He said before he drank the potion. "You need to work in a casino; You'd be everyone's good luck charm." He let out a cry of joy and drank the potion. They all backed up as he got bigger. When he was done transforming, he had turned into a stag.   
  
"Umm... James, I think you better turn back now." Selena took another step back and stepped into a puddle on the floor. James turned back and a grin was on his face.   
  
"Meilin, I could kiss you!" He said.  
  
"I suggest you don't." Meilin said. "Next," She grabbed the goblet from James and gave it to Sirius. After a second, she pulled it away from him.  
  
"What?" He asked.  
  
"I won't give it to you unless..." A smile crossed her face.   
  
"Oh, c'mon Meilin, that was ages ago."  
  
"No promise, No animangi." She smirked.  
  
"Okay, I promise. Now give me that goblet."  
  
"Good boy." There was a hint of devilish nature in her voice. She handed him back the goblet, and liked James, filled it with every last drop from the ladle. Sirius drank it and it took a moment for it to take affect. When he was done changing, he was a huge, black dog.   
  
"Oh so cute!" Meilin attacked him, squeezing him around the neck.  
  
"Meilin, I think he can't breath." Shampoo said coolly.   
  
"Oh... Sorry." Meilin blushed and stood up. Selena was sitting on the floor, picking fuzz off of her pajamas and talking quietly to Peter.  
  
"Knock it off, lovebirds. Peter, you're next." James said as Sirius changed back with a pop. Peter stood up and took a deep breath. He drank the warm potion, and with a pop, became a small, tiny rat. James knocked him into the air as Shampoo lunged, ready to kill. She meowed and leaped again, and this time, landed on a dizzy Peter. He had changed back in the nick of time. Shampoo let out a disappointed meow as she jumped back up on her perch on the stall door. Selena let out a shuddering breath and took the goblet. Her reflection shown in the purple liquid. She gulped it down in one gulp, but nothing happened.   
  
"Hmm... I wonder what's wrong..." Meilin started leafing through the book again.  
  
"No, it's okay. I already learned how to do it." Selena counterclaimed.  
  
"You couldn't have." Meilin cried out. "Oh, there has to be some other way..." She flipped rapidly through the pages, and found nothing. "Selena, I'm sorry, but you just weren't meant to be an animangi." And Meilin did look sorry.  
  
"Okay, fine." Selena backed towards the door. "Good-bye." She let the door close on it's own, but to Meilin it was as if she had slammed it. She let all the guys file out before she stopped Sirius.   
  
"Remember, You said you wouldn't tell about that." She gave him a serious look.  
  
"Okay, I solemnly swear I won't tell anyone about that trick I played on you where you fell over in the mud and came back into the castle and Filch told you off."  
  
"Sirius!"   
  
"Okay, I'm joking."  
  
"Goodnight, Sirius."  
  
"Goodnight, Meilin." Before Meilin could think about it, She kissed him on the cheek. Before he said anything, she ran after Shampoo. They walked together, laughing and talking, but at the same time, feeling sorry for Selena. As they walked into the common room, everyone was in an uproar.  
  
"What's going on?" Meilin asked another Ravenclaw girl. She was a rather large fifth year.  
  
"I don't know, Meilin." She had a clipped accent that really stood out. "But something happened in your dorm."   
  
Meilin's attention had been pulled from the girl and directed to Rebia. Was that a smile? Unmistakably, Rebia was smiling as she turned around and went back into her own dorm. Meilin and Shampoo pushed their way to the top of the stairs, and finally made it to their dorm. Right outside the door Angel and Misty were crying and Stephanie was trying to hold back tears.  
  
"What's wrong?" Shampoo asked.  
  
"It's Missy," Stephanie cried. "She's been murdered."  
  
Meilin's breath caught in her throat. "You're joking," She said. "She can't possibly be dead." She pushed everyone out of the way. Rachel was standing over by Missy's bed, which had scorch marks. Clearly the candles had burnt her bed when she had been dragged ... or whatever else might have happened.   
  
"What do we do Meilin?" Rachel sobbed.  
  
Meilin looked around the room, which had been trashed. Stephanie was right, she would have had to been murdered. The rest of the beds had been slashed to pieces. Meilin looked around. The teachers didn't know yet, so the body still had to be around. She noticed blood stains on the floor, which led over to the corner of the room.   
  
"Oh my God..." Meilin's voice was almost a squeak.  
  
"What?" Shampoo asked as she climbed over the debre and aftermath of their room.  
  
There, under a pile of feathers and what was left of a pillow, was the body of Missy. There was no blood on the body, but it looked as if whatever had done this had ... drank it? No, thought Meilin, no... It's all my fault.   
  
"Somebody go get a teacher. NOW." Rachel rushed out of the room and went to find a teacher.   
  
Clearly whoever had killed Missy had ripped open her throat.  
  
"It's all my fault." Meilin cried out as she turned to Shampoo. "It's all my fault!"  
  
"Don't talk like that." Shampoo said, grasping her shoulders.   
  
"You don't understand. It's all my fault!" She broke free of Shampoo's grasp and ran, blindly to wherever her legs would take her. She closed her eyes as she ran, letting her body taking her wherever it was going. She remembered something that she heard a long time ago, written upon the doors of some sacred tomb. A sacred tomb she had never been in.  
  
"My heart is stolen forth and taken to a place it knows best." She repeated the words as she ran. Her body was taking her to somewhere, somewhere she knew best. She felt her legs stop her. She opened her eyes and looked at where she was. Quickly saying the password, she stepped into a dark Gryffindor common room. Nobody was there, so she accended the steps to the boy's dorms. She knocked gently on a door, and a tall guy answered. She recognized him as Amos Diggory, and well, she considered him a jerk.   
  
"Excuse me," She said, her heart pounding in her chest. "Which dorm is Sirius Black's?"  
  
To her surprise, he didn't say anything about her being there. Instead he lead her down to a dorm and knocked loudly.  
  
"Chick escort service for Sirius Black." He said loudly, a teasing smile on his face.  
  
"Shut up," She grumbled. Suddenly the door opened and Sirius answered.  
  
"What kind of joke is-Oh, hello Meilin. What are you doing here?" He asked, concern in voice.  
  
Meilin couldn't help it. She broke down crying. 


	10. A Warning From the Dead

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
WARNING: THIS IS GETTING A LITTLE DARK!!!   
  
Chapter 10: The Warning of the Dead  
  
She cried for a few more minutes until she finally pulled herself together.  
  
"What's wrong with you?" Sirius asked, pulling her to her feet. She didn't respond, she was afraid that if she did, she would brake down again. Trusting her failing voice, she managed to choke out the only words her tongue would say.  
"Missy's dead," She choked, unable to control the tears falling down her cheeks. "She's been murdered."  
  
"What are you going on about? This can't be true. Missy's probably returning to her nice warm bed right now. Now why don't you go back to bed yourself?" He murmured, wiping away the tears on her cheek.   
  
"No, Sirius. I saw it myself. I saw her body and the blood and what was left of our room. Missy's dead, and no matter what you say, I know she's been murdered." The lights suddenly flicked on in Gryffindor tower. Meilin hid behind Sirius as a rather pale looking Professor McGonagall stepped in. It looked like she'd pass out right there on the floor.   
  
She called all of the Gryffindors into the common room. Meilin looked around to each sleepy, bewildered face. They had no clue what was going on. They had no clue that while they were tucked away in their warm beds that someone had killed an innocent girl. No, they had no clue about any of that. They were all murmuring and whispering as other   
Gryffindors stepped out of their dorms in bathrobes and fuzzy slippers. Professor McGonagall called for silence.   
  
"What are you doing here?" Peter asked her when he came out in his bathrobe.   
  
"Shh!" Remus said, standing on tiptoes to get a better look.   
  
The only person who seemed as if they hadn't been asleep was Rebia. A thought accured to Meilin; What had she been doing in the Ravenclaw common room anyway? Her mind flickered back to when she had seen Rebia a little over an hour ago. It was a few minutes after Missy was murdered. Her chain of thought was interrupted by McGonagall, who was yelling for silence again.  
  
"It has come to my attention," She said, looking at everyone in the room, "That tonight there has been a brutal murder."  
  
Everyone gasped. The first and second years had begun to cry, and were being comforted by older brothers and sisters.  
  
McGonagall continued. "Since we only have a month of terms left, we will not send you home. But if whoever has done this isn't caught by the end of the school year, I'm afraid we'll have to close the school down."  
  
All the Gryffindors gasped again. Some fifth year girls shrieked. But Meilin didn't do either. Her mind kept taking her back to the dorm. Something she hadn't paid to much attention to. Then it hit her. There had been a footprint in the puddle of blood that had been on the floor. The murderer's footprint? Yes, that would have to be it. It would have had to be the murderer's footprint. Missy was wearing shoes when they found her body. And this was a bare foot. Again she was interrupted by McGonagall.  
  
"All of the students in Ravenclaw will be sleeping in the great hall tonight, and tomorrow, and until this crime has been solved, they will join the other students in their houses." She left, and all of a sudden everyone seemed to notice Meilin. All at once she was bombarded with questions.  
  
"Who was killed?"  
  
"Was there any clues?"  
  
"Who do you think did it?"  
  
It didn't stop. Thankfully, Sirius and James waved them off of her.  
  
"She doesn't know anything, so leave her alone."  
  
She made her way through the excited crowd and headed towards the Great Hall. Something kept driving her on. Something was there. Something was waiting for her. She slammed the door open to the great hall. Nothing was there. Or was there? She could hear the shallow breathing in the dark shadows. She shut the door quietly, so not to disturb whatever-or whoever-it was. She heard a low growl, and the next thing she knew, she was running as fast as her legs would carry her.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo sat by the door, quietly awaiting Meilin's return. She watched as all the Ravenclaws got ready to go to the Great Hall. Meilin was nowhere in sight.  
  
******  
  
Selena awoke with a start as the doors swung open to the Slytherin dungeons. "This better be good," She muttered under her breath. "Or else."  
  
She followed the rest of the puzzled Slytherins out to where the potions teacher, Professor Ratine, was awaiting them with a smile.   
  
"Oh God," Selena heard one of the other Slytherins murmur. "Something is really wrong."  
  
"Good evening, Slytherins." He smiled, a horrible smile. "There has been a serious crime committed tonight, and that crime was murder." A horrible happiness flashed in his eyes.   
  
She heard a couple Slytherins ask who it was, trying to make sure it wasn't one of their friends.  
  
"Who, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. Missy Luiso." Selena gasped, making some of the Slytherins around her look at her strangely.   
  
"Unfortunately enough," Ratine continued,"They will be moving into other houses as of tomorrow." He left without saying anything else to the Slytherins, which was perfectly fine with them.  
  
******  
  
Fifteen-year-old Arena walked silently down the corridors. She didn't care if anyone saw her. It wasn't any of their business anyway. Her short purple hair fell like a shawl across her thin shoulders. It wasn't naturally that color, she just kept it that way to annoy her mother. Not that she didn't like her natural hair, for it had been her favorite color; Black. The torches lighting the corridors reflected in her emerald green eyes, giving her the look of a crouching tiger, ready to attack it's prey. She went and fumbled with the portrait that led into the prefects bath.  
  
"Vampire stew." She muttered, and the picture moved to let her in. She looked at the marble floor, which seemed so cozy and welcoming. Midnight was the perfect time to take a bath. She filled the huge bath full of water and soaked in the warm water.   
  
"I might not be a prefect," She said to herself,"But I can still enjoy a fine bath." She laughed at her accomplishment. So simple, yet so wrong. And she liked wrong. Her life revolved around it.  
  
She swam a few laps in the Olympic pool-sized tub. It was so refreshing, especially since nobody was around. Turning on a faucet, she let the tub fill with purple bubbles. The aroma was like running through a field of flowers. She spotted the picture of the mermaid, hanging on the wall.  
  
"If I wasn't supposed to be in here, I would have already disposed of that." She shook her head and dove under the water. Kicking down to the bottom, she pulled the plug. Getting out, she put back on her clothes, a leather tube top, fringed jean shorts, a dog collar choker, and a pair of knee-high biker boots. Her mother really despised the way she dressed, almost more than she despised her hair. She walked back to the Gryffindor common room, and it seemed like the whole place was up.  
  
"Is there a party going on I didn't know about?" She asked a fellow fifth year boy, Gregory McCann.   
  
"No party, Arena." His face was as grave as his pale, blue eyes. "Just murder."  
  
******  
  
All of the Ravenclaws were led to the great hall, where sleeping bags were being provided. Shampoo, along with the other girls from their dorm, chose to drag their sleeping bags to a vacant corner. It was clear no one was going to sleep much that night, if they slept at all.   
  
"I'm worried. What if they never find out who did it?" Rachel asked through tears.  
  
"I'm sure they'll find them. They'll have to." Angel promised, grabbing her friends hand.  
  
Stephanie sat in silence, her pale features looked stressed.  
  
"How...?" she asked. "How...?"  
  
"I don't know." Misty answered.  
  
Shampoo didn't bother to enter this conversation. Where was Meilin? Why hadn't she returned yet? What if... No. She wouldn't let herself think about the possibilities. For all she knew, Meilin could have just went to see Sirius. She lay down, thinking about how tomorrow everything would be better. By then, they would have caught the criminal. By then, Meilin would be back. By then... Shampoo fell asleep, her thoughts weighing down in her head.  
  
******  
  
Meilin returned to her now empty common room. Since everyone had been panicking, the place was in shambles. She went and sat down in an armchair, leaning back for a few brief seconds, allowing her mind to rest. She'd be safe here. Safe from what she had heard in the dark Great Hall. She jumped as she heard a soft cry from upstairs. Her heart racing, she accended the stairs, ready for anything she might find. As she got closer, a ghostly voice was calling out her name.   
  
"Meilin," it called, softly in the air. "Meilin."  
  
"What do you want?" Her voice shook, causing her heart to beat even faster.  
  
"Come here, Meilin. I won't hurt you." The voice called out from behind the door of what used to be her dorm.  
  
Meilin hesitated and took a few steps into the room. It was just as it was before, except no dead bodies. Instead, there was...  
  
"Missy?" Meilin asked in disbelief.  
  
The blue lifeform nodded.   
  
"You can call me Missy if you wish. I am Missy's spirit. Meilin, I have come to tell you something very important." She looked Meilin straight in the eye. "There is a traitor among you. You are the only one who can stop them, Meilin."  
  
"But ... how?"   
  
"You know what you have to do..." The figure faded, and finally. Missy was gone.  
  
"Oh no..." Meilin turned around, and ran down the stairs. She threw herself back into the chair. "No one can see me like this." She said, but her voice was just a tiny squeak.   
  
******  
  
Celestina awoke the next morning to a shuffling noise outside her door. Putting on her slippers, she opened the door. Outside, about 1/4 of the Ravenclaws were standing in the middle of the common room, waiting for directions. Celestina joined Rebia, who was staring at the Ravenclaws with beady dislike.  
  
"What's going on?" Celestina asked.  
  
"Like McGonagall said, They're moving in." She gave a short grunt, then went on talking. "Five more of them were killed last night, and a sixth made it alive."   
  
"Who?" Celestina demanded, grabbing Rebia's wrist.  
  
"Raven-"  
  
"I know that! Now who, Rebia?!"  
  
"You're really worked up about this..."  
  
"WHO?!"  
  
"Okay fine, I only know their first names, though. Some girls named Stephanie, Angel, Misty, Rachel, and Meilin. That sixth girl, the one who survived, was some weirdo named Shampoo. I mean who goes off and names their kid-"  
  
"Oh, God." Celestina cut her off. "Where's my brother?"  
  
"In bed, I suppose." Rebia snorted. "That's all men are good for."  
  
Ignoring Rebia, Celestina cut across to the boys dorms and hammered on Peter's door.  
  
"Who is it?" A voice from inside called groggily. She realized it was James'.  
  
"Open up this door, now. It's me." She called.  
  
"Me who?" Peter yelled sleepily.  
  
"It's your sister. Now let me in right this minute."   
  
She didn't need to say more, the door flung open and almost hit her in the face.  
  
"What?" Peter was barely awake.   
  
"I have some bad news." She said as she entered their pigsty of a dorm. "Look, Meilin's dead. Along with all the other girls in her dorm. In fact, the only one alive is Shampoo."   
  
The boys stared at her in disbelief for a moment, then in unison, passed out.  
  
"Well, that was easy." She shrugged and brushed her hair back. She bounded off to join her friends, leaving them there. 


	11. Four Down, Nine to Go

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
WARNING: THIS IS GETTING A LITTLE DARK!!! PLEASE READ & REVEIW!!!!  
  
Chapter 11: Four down, Nine to Go  
  
Shampoo opened her eyes for the first time in days. Her vision was a little blurry, but her mind was everything but. She sat up, remembering what had happened to her. A wave of nausea hit her, forcing her to lay back down on the cool sheets of the bed in the Hospital wing. She could tell it would be a while before Madam Pomfrey let her leave. She watched as Madam Pomfrey came out of her office, dragging a bottle of potion to give to a small second year boy. He had apparently got in the way of a swelling charm.  
  
She closed her eyes again, and opened them almost instantly. A flash of what had happened had started to replay in her mind. Blood. Blood everywhere. And the creature... Was it a dog? Or was it a human? Or strangely, was it both? But her friends... They were all dead. Meilin probably was, too. She let out a sob, attracting Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"Oh, you're awake dear. I'll send someone to get the Headmaster, he'll surely want to see you." She handed over a large piece of chocolate, which Shampoo nibbled on eagerly. She was starving.   
  
"What time is it?" She asked quietly, shoving the chocolate in her mouth.  
  
"A little past noon." Madam Pomfrey replied, scribbling a note to the Headmaster. She stepped outside and stopped someone, telling them to take it to Dumbledore.  
  
She lay back down, more than eager to take a nap.   
  
Maybe it was all a dream... She thought. I'll wake up, and everything will be normal.   
  
She yawned and stretched out on her bed. The sun outside created a friendly warmth to her skin.  
  
******  
  
Arena walked boredly into Professor McGonagall's empty classroom. Classes had been canceled that day, since the survivor had awaken. She twirled her hair between her fingers.   
  
"A day to do what I want, and I have detention." She grumbled. "And of all the people..." She let her voice trail off. She had flicked off the Potions teacher for giving her homework, right in front of his face. Not that everyone in his class hadn't dreamed of doing that. No, they just didn't have enough courage. That's what set Arena from others. That and her dream of being a Slytherin.  
  
"Good morning, Arena. Here, get to work." Professor McGonagall handed a stack of papers over to Arena. Same as always, she had to fill out the same paper over and over again. She was getting sick of seeing this paper. What did Professor McGonagall need with all this paperwork anyway? She looked at the first one, which had been done for her. Copying it exactly, except for the handwriting, she hastily filled out the form. She worked in silence for an hour, until she finally said something.  
  
"How can you stand to work in silence?" She asked, copying the twenty-eighth form.  
  
Minerva McGonagall looked up from her work, looking at the girl who dared to ask such questions. "I just can." She said after a minute.  
  
"Can't we have some music or something?" Arena knew she was pushing it.   
  
"You are here to pay for what you did, not enjoy yourself." McGonagall got that firmiliar look she got when she got mad. She always seemed to lose her patience with Arena. It was natural.  
  
"All I did was give that old buzzard what he deserved," She said in an innocent tone.  
  
"ARENA NICOLE, HOW DARE YOU!"   
  
Arena hated when people used her middle name. But then, who didn't?  
  
"Yeah, yeah, sorry." She grumbled, moving back to her papers. Yup, this was going to be a fine day.  
  
******  
  
Stephanie awoke in a dark room. It was a little after noon, or so she guessed. She sat up, feeling dizzy.   
  
"Hungry..." She whispered to the dark, cold room. She looked around, her eyes adjusting to the darkness. Around her were bodies covered by sheets.  
  
Must be a make-do morgue... Her head was thinking. Food... But the other half of her mind was screaming "NO!!!".  
  
Which to listen to... decisions, decisions... If she didn't eat, she would die. But if she did, she would lose all human in her. And the smells... She could smell blood all around her. She ran her tongue over her teeth. They were razor sharp fangs, made exactly for the creature she was. Pushing her hair behind her ears, she bent over one of the now uncovered bodies.  
  
"Damn," She cursed. "It already took all the blood." She looked at the corpse and covered it back up. She uncovered a second, then a third. All the same. Giving it one last try, She uncovered the the fourth. The corpse of Angel Kaplan lay in front of her. The murderer hadn't had time to finish off this one. Lowering her head, she drank the blood.   
  
"NOOO!!!!!!" Her voice inside her head screamed, but was drowned out. Stephanie's vampire side was beyond reasoning.  
  
******  
  
Sirius awoke, feeling shock towards Celestina's words. It couldn't be true, Meilin couldn't be dead. He looked around, noticing Remus and James were also awake.  
  
"Shampoo's alive..." Remus sobbed.   
  
James was staring at Remus in amusement.  
  
"What's wrong, Remus, ticked because your girlfriend lived?" James was up to his old jokes, but his heart wasn't in it.  
  
Remus shot him a look, and turned to look at Peter.  
  
"Wait a minute, How did Celestina know that?" Sirius asked all of a sudden.  
  
"Know what?" Remus and James asked in unison.  
  
"That those five girls were dead. I mean, surely, the professors hadn't told any of the students by the time she told us."   
  
"You know, your right. Let's see if we can get Peter up and we'll go ask her." James said thoughtfully.  
  
Twenty minutes later they had woke Peter up, who was beside himself with grief.  
  
"Get it together," Remus said, shaking Peter. "We all miss them."  
  
"My ... my ... girlfriend..." Peter sobbed.  
  
"You, girlfriend? Get real." Celestina stood in the doorway, peering at them.  
  
"I did too have a girlfriend." Peter shot back.  
  
"Then who?"   
  
"Angel."  
  
"I always knew she was a nut." Celestina shook her head. "Now she's not just a nut, but a nutcase."  
  
"Celestina, I have a question." James said as he stepped between Peter and his sister.  
  
"What?" She flipped her blonde hair, giving her the slightest look of a veela.  
  
"How did you know exactly who was murdered last night?" James had a hint of suspicion in his voice.  
  
"Rebia told me. No biggie, though. I suppose she got it off someone else." She shrugged.   
  
"Then she won't mind if we go ask her a few questions?"   
  
"Suit yourselves." She walked off, leaving the door wide open.  
  
"Who's going with me?" James asked, standing where Celestina used to have been.  
  
Sirius didn't hesitate to respond. He knew Meilin was alive and he wouldn't stop until he found out she was safe. "Me." He said.  
  
"I think I'll stay here and try and keep him under control." Remus responded, with a sideways look at Peter.  
  
"Okay then." James and Sirius left, leaving the other two to themselves. They marched over to Rebia's dorm and pounded on the door. Rebia came after a few minutes, muttering to herself.  
  
"Can I help you?" She glared through the half-opened door.  
  
"I wanted to ask you something." James started as Rebia stared at him. "Exactly how did you know those girls were dead?"  
  
"Why do you want to know?" She demanded, her eyes not leaving James.  
  
"Because we want to know. They were our friends." James continued.  
  
Rebia laughed, a high, jackal-like laugh. "That's funny, because I'm not going to tell you."  
  
"Then we'll force it out of you." Sirius could feel more and more hate towards Rebia as each second went by.  
  
"Good luck." She laughed again as she slammed the door in their face.  
  
"I really hate her." James said as they began to walk towards the Hospital wing.   
  
"Who doesn't?" Sirius sighed. Please let her be safe, Sirius thought. Please.  
  
"Celestina."  
  
After a long pause, Sirius picked the conversation up again. "It's hard to believe they're related. I mean, Celestina looks like a supermodel, and well... Peter doesn't."  
  
"You're right about that." James laughed. They reached the Hospital wing, promising Madam Pomfrey they would only stay five minutes, they went to see Shampoo.   
  
******  
  
Rebia sat alone in her dorm. Thinking about the nights past murders, she muttered to herself, "Four down, Nine to go." 


	12. The End of Murder, Rebia Unleashes Secre...

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
WARNING: THIS IS THE LAST, I REPEAT, LAST DARK CHAPTER!!!  
  
Chapter 12: The End of Murder, Rebia Unleashes Secrets  
  
Rebia sat up and jumped off her bed. It was one of those boring days where nothing was going on. Walking slowly over to the door, she transformed and slipped out of Gryffindor tower, completely unnoticed. She snuck around the halls, leaving no trace of her being there. She did this every day. Or at least, for the past few. Her jackal ears picked up every sound, even those most cats couldn't pick up. Her nose twitched as she smelled Filch a couple of corridors over. Yes, she loved this creature, and she had become this creature. Her eyes, the most useless part of this creature's body, darted from corner to corner. This was perfect, nine to go and she had to trap them herselves. She gave a jackal type smile, showing all of her pointy, sharp teeth. This could be fun.  
  
******  
  
Arena sat in Professor McGonagall's classroom, filling out the last of the forms. She stood up and placed them on McGonagall's desk, and grabbed her bag. She could finally leave. As she walked towards the door, McGonagall called out to her.  
  
"Arena, try to stay out of trouble." She said calmly, then watched Arena leave.   
  
When she was out of earshot, Arena mumbled something under her breath.  
  
"I will ... not." She smiled an evil smile. She loved to annoy her mother, whether it be her hair, clothes, or behavior, she had it in for Minerva McGonagall.  
  
******  
  
Meilin sat in the dark Ravenclaw common room, wrapped in an old blanket. It hid everything, including her face. No one would see her like this, she vowed. Her and Shampoo were the only ones who knew, and it would stay that way.  
  
******  
  
Selena sat alone at a table in the Great Hall, eating her lunch. It wasn't anything special, just a small piece of chicken. She didn't even like chicken. But still, it was better than her mood. She jumped as she felt a pair of cold hands on her shoulder. She whirled around, and there, standing behind her, was Lucius Malfoy. He gave her a skeptical look as she pushed his hands off her shoulder.  
  
"Do you mind?" She snapped, glaring at him.  
  
"No, not really." He took the piece of chicken right out of her hands and tossed it behind his back. "And how is my favorite lady today?" He flashed her one of his greasy smiles.  
  
"Disgusted." She growled, scooting away from him.  
  
"Now, now, that's not nice."  
  
"And you are?"  
  
"Hey now, no need to be rude. I was going to give you the honors-" She didn't let him finish.  
  
"Leave me alone!" She snarled, and stomped off. Lucius sat watching her with an eyebrow raised.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo had just woke up when her first visitors of the day arrived. James and Sirius walked in, promising Madame Pomfrey they would stay no more than five minutes and not ask Shampoo so many questions.  
  
"Good morning... Or is it afternoon?" Shampoo greeted.  
  
"Well, Aren't we lucky? You escape death, you sleep all you want, and you get excused from doing all homework from almost every class but potions! Life is not fair." James joked wryly.  
  
"Ha ha, very funny." She gave James a look.  
  
"So, what's been killing everyone?" he asked in a more quieter tone.  
  
"To tell the truth, I have no clue." She seemed to choke on the words, as if they were hard to say. "It all happened so quickly... That creature... That thing ... it was... something that can't have possibly existed. I've never seen such a thing before, and believe me, I've seen everything. But when I saw it I knew immedeantly that it had done all of this." She stopped and waited for a few minutes. "James?" She turned around to meet his eyes. "Promise me you won't go looking for that creature. I can't lose any more friends." Her eyes were filled with an emotion James had never seen in Shampoo; Fear. She was silently pleading him, and finally he gave in.  
  
"Yes, okay." He turned to leave. "See you around, Shampoo."  
  
******  
  
Stephanie sat in the dark, dusty, shrieking shack. She still had a few days until the full moon, so she didn't need to worry about any visitors. She had eaten a full meal earlier before, so no piercing cries for food were in her head. As a matter of fact, she thought of nothing. Nothing, at least, until she heard a faint meowing sound. Getting up and brushing the dirt off her white robes, She followed the sound of the animal's cries. She walked into a rather shabby bedroom, where the source of the cries lay on the floor. A cat sat watching her every move, and when noticed, retreated to some other place, leaving Stephanie alone again.   
  
"I hope no one minds..." She said to herself as she pulled the sheets back and pulled them over her body. They were cool and gave her a comforting feeling. She lay there, caccooned not only in the bed, but in her mind as well.  
  
******  
  
Remus walked down the corridors, heading towards the charms classroom. He was going to have a make-up session for a important class he had missed during the last full moon. As he walked, he saw a little girl, not looking the least bit over six, staring at him. He decided to just ignore her.   
  
"Hello." She said to him. He continued walking, for he was already late. She waited before saying it again. "I said hello to you. Are you not going to be polite and say hello back?"  
  
"Hi." He muttered, and looked at the small girl. She had huge blue eyes and messy black hair. I bet no brush has ever survived that, he guessed. Noticing the time, he walked off, leaving her in the empty hallway.   
  
******  
  
Skuld giggled. "I knew he likes me." She laughed again, turning around to go back to Dumbledore's office, where she was supposed to stay unless she had permission. And she didn't. But it never stopped her before.  
  
******   
  
Celestina was in her room singing when she heard a loud rap on the door. Hoping if she ignored it they would go away, she turned the volume on her record player up louder to drown out the knocking, and continued singing. She heard the door creak open and noticed Peter walking in.  
  
"What are you doing here?" She demanded, folding her arms.  
  
"Well,..." He stammered under his sister's angry gaze.  
  
"Spit it out." Her tone was harsher than she intended. But never mind that, she was losing valuable time. Time she could be using to become a star.  
  
"I was wondering if you could give me a bit of...you know..." He shook slightly terrified of what his sister might do. "give me some sisterly advice?"  
  
Celestina stared for a moment, and finally managed to regain a calm tone.  
  
"Sure," She turned off her record player and sat down on her bed, motioning for Peter to sit next to her. "What do you need?"  
  
"Well, I have this interest in a particular girl..."  
  
******   
  
Sirius had the idea in his head. He would search every passage, every hallway, every corner until he found Meilin, starting with the Ravenclaw tower. He would wait until that night before he went to find her, so no one would know he was gone. He knew he was risking being expelled, and also, killed. But he didn't care. Meilin meant the world to him whether she knew it or not. He wasn't going to lose her that easily.  
  
******  
  
That night, a little after midnight, Meilin snuck out of Ravenclaw common room. Being unable to turn into a dragon at the moment, she continued to stay wrapped in her blanket. She made her way to the lake, lurking in the shadows so no one would see her. She set foot in the cold water, letting her senses take over. She was at home. "The sooner I do this, the sooner it will be over and I can go back to my common room." She thought. She knew she would believe it more if she could have said it aloud, but in this body, that was impossible. All that was able to come out of the lips of this creature were giggles. That and some eerie type of song, and if she tried to say anything, it would turn out as some weird type of squeak. She hid the blanket under a nearby bush, and waded out as far as she could go (which wasn't very far considering she was pretty short). She propelled herself under, letting the creatures senses take control. It felt good under water. It felt like home. Here she was welcome, loved. In the world above, nothing felt like home, no one loved her, no one cared. She could stay here forever, and no one would care. But something was calling her human side. Or was it someone? She no longer cared. Bringing herself to a rest at the bottom, she started singing her eerie song. Each note wavered in the water, and finally disappeared. She knew that just because she gave in to this creature, She would look like this a few more days before she would turn back to normal. She pushed off of the bottom, shooting up to the top in a matter of seconds. She got out and wrapped herself back in the blanket. She didn't realize how wrong she had been until she had noticed she was back to normal. She looked down, her clothes, her hair, and her body were all wet as if she had took a swim or a shower. She grabbed the blanket; she might need it again soon. She returned back to her common room and fell asleep in an armchair, unaware of what would happen in the next few hours.   
  
******  
  
Rebia laughed. This was so simple ... and it was almost ready. All she had to do was tip the others off, and they would fall back to her, like dominoes. Then she would have them were she wanted. She heard a soft scratching noise, and turned to watch her black cat, Nefertiri, stalk slowly in. Nefertiri meowed a pitiful meow, telling Rebia she had did her part. The cat was a mess, but then, she looked the same way when Rebia had found her. She was missing a piece of her ear, where it had been bitten by a jackal. The other ear had three gold hoop earrings, one on the top, one in the middle, and one on the bottom. The cat also wore an elaborate collar, which had been taken from a royal cat in a pharaoh's tomb when Rebia was in Egypt. Yes, Rebia was quite a thief. And she had trained her cat to take after her. The cat walked over to her and sat next to her feet, beginning to lick her paws clean.   
  
Rebia paused for a minute, looking at her silent companion. "What do you think, Nefertiri?" She asked finally.  
  
"Meow." Nefertiri's response was like a cackle.  
  
"Perfect."  
  
******  
  
Sirius sat up in bed. He had never fell asleep, but he had acted like it so everyone else would go to bed. Slipping out of Gryffindor tower, he headed towards the abandoned Ravenclaw tower. If he knew Meilin like he thought he did, This was where she would be. He went through the portrait hole, and almost immeadently, he saw Meilin. She looked so sweet curled up like that, and he almost felt guilty waking her. But he had to get her out of here before she was killed, too. He went over and shook her gently, and she began to stir. She rolled over and continued to sleep. This was no time to worry about her getting her beauty rest. He took a deep breath and shook her harder. She opened her eyes slowly, as though she was still half-asleep. She rolled over, her blue eyes blank.  
  
"Sirius?" She murmured, sitting up. "What are you doing here?"  
  
He was beyond words. He couldn't believe it... She was alive!   
  
"Meilin, are you okay?" He asked, thinking it was too good to be true.   
  
"Fine. Sleepy, but fine." She yawned. "Why? What's wrong?"  
  
"Meilin, We have to get you somewhere safer." He didn't answer her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of Ravenclaw tower, ignoring her remarks. When they got back to Gryffindor tower, they noticed Remus, James, Lily, Peter, and Celestina were gone. Shrugging, Meilin curled back up in one of the chairs, almost instantly falling asleep. Sirius went upstairs to go to bed himself, but found a hastily written note on his bed. Running back down the stairs, he shook Meilin awake again.   
  
"What?" He could tell she was sick of being woken up.  
  
"Come on, we have to go see what the heck James wants." He replied.  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
Sirius showed her the note James had wrote earlier. Getting up, she followed Sirius to the library where the note had told them to go. James, along with everyone else, was waiting impatiently.   
  
"Why did you invite us here in the middle of the night?" James was all over Sirius.  
  
"This better be good." Celestina grumbled.  
  
"What are you guys talking about?" Sirius shot back. "You invited me!"  
  
"No, I didn't."   
  
"Guys..." Meilin stuttered. "Uh... Guys..." Above them, sitting on a chandelier, was Rebia. Next to her, was her mangled cat, and on the other side...  
  
"Oh my God..." Celestina's eyes went as big as plates.  
  
"What is that?" Lily gasped.  
  
"Holy..." The boys stood in awe of the creature. Around them they heard the locks on the doors clicked shut. It would be a miracle if they survived.   
  
"Heh heh. Gypsy girl, eh, Remus?" Rebia mocked. "No, I am certainly not a gypsy. And believe me, I'm not nearly as nice as one, either." She smiled, a dangerous, merciless smile. "Oh I see you've noticed my good friend here." She gestured towards the creature next to her. "This, everyone, is Anubis, God of mummification in the ancient days of where I come from." She stopped as Nefertiri hissed at something below them. There, on top of a bookshelf, was a highly recognizable cat with huge eyes.  
  
"Shampoo, Move!!!" Meilin cried out. Both cats lunged at each other at the same time, and landed on the floor in a fit of claws, teeth, and fur. Meilin watched in horror as the two fought, ripping and slashing at each other. When Nefertiri finally backed off, not much was left of Shampoo. Meilin rushed over and scooped up the unconscious body. She turned back to Rebia, who was clearly enjoying the moment.  
  
"Rebia, I have always hated you. I've always suspected you when this started up. I should have known." She glared, her eyes filled with hate. "You've gone too far. I hope your soul rots forever." Sirius could tell Meilin wasn't done when Rebia spoke up again.  
  
"I don't care what you think about me. And after tonight, It won't matter what any of you nine think." She spat, her face embedded with boredom, as if she routinely killed people.   
  
"Nine?" Lily asked, but was interrupted by a cold voice.   
  
"I'm up here." A little further away from them, Stephanie was perched on something.   
  
"But it can't be... You're dead!"  
  
"No. I'm afraid I don't die that easily. Too bad for me." Stephanie's complexion was waxy, almost the color of the moon. She looked at Rebia with a look of distaste. "The least you can do for someone you're trying to kill is do it right."   
  
"Yes, you're right of course." Rebia agreed. "Good thing I've got all of these subjects to practice on."  
  
"Rebia, Come down here and let's talk it out before you do something crazy. We can work it out and then all go back to bed." Celestina offered, pleading her best friend.   
  
"No, I like it much better up here in charge. And I wouldn't want to disappoint my friend here." The tone in her voice told them she was beyond reasoning. "Oh you don't know how long I've wanted to do this Celestina. You've always took the spotlight, pushing me back from what I've wanted all my life. All I've ever asked for friends, but I never got it. Now with you gone, Celestina, I will get that and a whole lot more. Tomorrow, after making sure all evidence leading to me is gone, I will go tell the professors some story about how I survived and tried to save all of you, but it was too late." She laughed, long and loud. "Good-bye, Celestina. It was good while it lasted." She was about to call a restless Anubis to attack when Meilin stepped in front of Celestina, followed by Selena.  
  
"Look Rebia, It's not Celestina's fault you don't have friends. It's your own." Selena called out.  
  
"In order to make friends, you have to be one!" Meilin followed.  
  
"And by the way you've been treating people, It's a wonder you don't have any." Stephanie joined in, jumping down from her perch.   
  
"Treating people, huh? Well, how about this. I know things about each of you that none of you would want to be known to the public. Or your friends. Like I know that Stephanie's a vampire and wouldn't think twice about eating any of you. Or that Selena, or should I say Narcissa, has been impersonating her dead twin." Rebia smiled as Selena let out a racking sob.  
  
"Is this true, Selena?" Lily asked quietly.  
  
"Yes," Selena sobbed. "It is. My twin died at birth from being choked to death. My mother still named her, calling her the name of Selena. She named me Narcissa. A few days after I was born my father killed my mother. He spared me, saying I had an energy in me that he could use when he took over the world and killed off everyone." Selena stopped, giving Rebia a chance to talk.   
  
"Need we say who her father is?" She was excited, and it showed. "Lord Voldemort himself."  
  
A few of the people in the room gasped. Selena sobbed harder. Some didn't say anything.  
  
"And that she is the heir to his power?" Rebia was overly excited. She would have said more, but Anubis had made a sudden move.   
  
Anubis had had enough. He howled, and jumping down from where he had been sitting, he started to go after them.   
  
******  
  
Meilin knew what she had to do. But how would she do it without them finding out? "What's more important?" She nagged at herself impatiently. "Your friend's lives or them finding out your darkest secret?" She ducked behind everyone else, trying to find the perfect place right for her transformation.   
  
******  
  
It all happened so fast. Remus stood there, frozen with shock. One minute Anubis was in front of them, next it was laying on the floor cringing in pain. But where had that blast come from? Remus looked up, and there, floating above him, was that little girl with the messy hair. She winked at him, and in a shimmer of light, she was gone. Suddenly another blast of light filled the room as a blue ball of water flew through the air and devoured Anubis. He was gone. Remus jumped as the body of Rebia fell from above.  
  
******  
  
Skuld gently pushed Rebia's body off of the chandelier. "She won't be under Anubis's spell any more." Making herself invisible, she called out to the chaotic room under her.  
  
"Umm ... people? Look, I'm not supposed to be here, and I am going to be punished, but you are all very lucky to be alive. None of you have ever known the real Rebia, for she has been under Anubis's spell. So please, don't give her a hard time when she wakes up." Skuld disappeared so she would avoid questions.   
  
******  
  
"C'mon, lets get her to the hospital wing." James said, and Remus and Peter helped him carry Rebia's stiff body out of the Library, followed by Selena who carried Shampoo. When everyone was gone, and after she transformed back, Meilin ran over to Sirius.   
  
"Sirius," She began, but was at a loss of words.  
  
"I know, Meilin. I know." He held her close, and for once, she felt loved. 


	13. The Prefect Disaster

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's. I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
OKAY, THIS IS BACK TO NORMAL, NO MORE DARK CHAPTERS UNTIL THE END OF PART FOUR, OR UNTIL I THINK OF SOMETHING ELSE DARK I WANT TO HAPPEN.  
  
Chapter 13: The Prefect Disaster  
  
Meilin sighed. The past few days went by so fast, they were a blur in her head. Things were still far from normal, but now she didn't have to worry about the school being closed down. She could hang around all summer, and actually not have to worry about going homeless. Being a so-called orphan, she normally spent one month of summer with her friends, then the rest was spent at Hogwarts, studying, daydreaming, and any other thing you might do.   
  
The sky above her was a brilliant blue, with clouds here and there. It was a quiet Saturday morning and Meilin lay in the grass, staring blankly at the sky. She rolled over, picking up her watch as she did so. She lazily got up, brushed the grass of her clothes, and went to get some breakfast. She sat down at the Ravenclaw table, away from everyone else. She wanted, no, she needed to be alone. But then, she couldn't let herself be alone.   
  
"I better enjoy the company while I still can." She muttered under her breath. She picked up her plate again, moving off towards another table.  
  
******  
  
Sirius watched a group of prefects walk by, giggling and acting so perfect. Being in a bad mood, he decided to take it out on the prefects. He looked at James, who was rearranging the eggs on his plate to make a face.  
  
"How can they be so perfect?" Sirius glared, watching the prefects take their seats. "I mean, no one is that perfect. And they're all so snobby. I would never, ever, date a prefect." He stopped talking, noticing James pulling his hand over his throat.  
  
"What is your problem? Oh, I see, you want to behead all the prefects?" Sirius rambled on, unaware that someone was standing behind him.  
  
******  
  
Meilin couldn't believe what she was hearing. Had he really said that? She wouldn't put up with this. She took her plate, and holding it high above his head, dropped it.  
  
"Ow!" He roared. "What did you do that for?!" He demanded. She ignored him and stopped out of the great hall. By now, all the tables where murmuring, trying to figure out what was going on.   
  
Selena sighed. She took Meilin's empty seat next to Sirius.   
  
"Sirius, you're dating a prefect." Celestina sighed as she leaned over the table.  
  
"Yeah, Meilin's a prefect. Didn't you know that?" Selena asked.  
  
"No." Sirius admitted.   
  
"Do you want me to talk to Meilin?" Shampoo offered.  
  
"No, I'll do it myself later." Sirius responded.  
  
******  
  
Skuld looked boredly out the window, longing to go outside and play. She wasn't allowed outside because she had gotten in trouble for meddling.   
  
"You could have created a paradox!" she remembered McGonagall saying. All she had done was save everyone. Wasn't that the right thing to do? She wasn't sure. All she was sure of was that she wanted to go outside. After all, they couldn't keep her cooped up forever, could they? She wasn't quite sure about that, either.  
  
******  
  
Arena rolled over. What time is it, anyway? she thought. Looking at the clock, she had missed breakfast. It didn't matter much to her, she didn't eat breakfast anyway. For once, she didn't have detention. As a-matter-of-fact, she had been pretty good lately. Which was against her standards. She didn't care. She hadn't cared about anything in a while. Singing to herself, she headed towards the showers. Time for a pick-me-up. Her mind said when she got out. She dried off and towel-dried her hair. She got dressed quickly and made sure no one was around. Since nobody was, she dug under her bed, looking for a small box. Pulling it out, she checked again to make sure no one was there. She pulled off the lid, and pulled out a bottle of alcohol. She put the bottle up to her lips, and in a few large gulps, It was gone. She sighed happily.   
  
******  
  
Rebia left the hospital wing, dizzy and tired. Her body ached, and she could barely put two words together. But other than that, she was fine. And she craved something ... but what? She didn't know. She felt as if a chunk of her memory was gone. She slowly made her way to Gryffindor tower, not sure why she was having trouble remembering things.   
  
******  
  
Stephanie ran her tongue over her teeth. It was mealtime. She felt weak from not eating the past few days, but she only ate when she needed to. She jumped off the tree branch she had been sitting on. Leaving the Hogwarts grounds, she ventured out to muggle territory. To them, she looked like your normal adolescent. Taking cover in an alley, she waited patiently for a muggle to wander helplessly into her midst. She pitied the poor fool. She stood perfectly still for what seemed like hours when she heard a small scuffing of shoes on pavement. Jumping out from the shadows, she trapped the person before they knew what had happened.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo lay on her bed in Ravenclaw tower, flipping through a magazine when she heard a knock on the door.   
  
"Hold on a minute." She grumbled, getting off her bed. She threw open the door where Sirius stood.  
  
"May I help you?" She asked grumpily.  
  
"Is Meilin here?" He sounded hopeful.  
  
"No, she left for Hogsmeade earlier. I haven't seen her since."  
  
"Go away Shampoo." Meilin growled, coming out from her hiding place.  
  
"When did you get back?" Shampoo was surprised.  
  
"It doesn't matter. Now go." Meilin took Shampoo's place at the door. "I was hoping that plate gave you a concussion. What do you want?"  
  
"Look, I'm sorry about what I said earlier. Will you forgive me?" He gave her one of his puppy-dog looks.  
  
"I'll forgive you this once, but I'm going to pay you back. I know how much you like us girls cheerleading at your quidditch matches, but tomorrow you are facing Slytherin for the house cup. Am I right?"  
  
"Yeah, your point?"  
  
"Well, we all know Narcissa will cheerlead for Slytherin, and just to get you back, I will too."  
  
"You what?! Meilin, you can't do this! Please, you can do anything but that."  
  
"No. Now I shall see you tomorrow. Good night." She closed the door.  
  
Sirius walked out of Ravenclaw tower feeling worse than he had when he came.  
  
******  
  
Celestina searched everywhere rapidly for Rebia. Finding her sitting on a windowsill, she called up to her.  
  
"Rebia! Come down here!"  
  
"Hm?" Rebia had been gazing at the sky, lost in thought.  
  
"Come down here!"  
  
Rebia climbed down and joined Celestina. "What?"  
  
"Did you know," Celestina giggled. "My brother likes you?"   
  
"Oh my God... Rebia let this sink in. A second later, she screamed. 


	14. Return of the Cheerleaders

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 14: The Return of the Cheerleaders  
  
The next morning it was damp as the students filed out to the quidditch field for the final game of the school year. The sky above them was threatening rain, and thunder could be heard a distance away. But still, nothing would dampen the mood of the crowd as they eagerly awaited the beginning of yet another exciting match. As the two teams, Slytherin and Gryffindor, got ready to go out on the field, the crowd's cheers became louder.   
  
"Cheerleaders," Amos Diggory muttered irritably. Being the team captain, he found the cheerleaders a distraction. He turned back to his team. "Are we ready?"  
  
They all muttered their yeses, and finally made their way to the field. After Amos shook hands with the Slytherin team captain, they were off.  
  
******  
  
Meilin and Selena walked to their side of the stadium. Both were wearing green for the occasion, whereas Lily and Shampoo were wearing red. Both had disagreed with Meilin's sudden idea. Selena was actually overjoyed. Meilin wasn't quite sure if she was either.  
  
They started out with a simple routine which involved a couple flips and ended in a backflip. The crowd loved it. Breaking out into another cheer, they kept the crowd going.   
  
Why am I doing this? Meilin asked herself. I'm not supposed to look cute and cheer for the Slytherins. I'm a Ravenclaw, and I personally vowed not to have anything to do with them...   
  
"I need to get my head checked." She grumbled, doing another flip.   
  
******  
  
Celestina and Rebia took their seats in the stands, not far from the ground. She took out a pair of omniculars and focused on the air above her.  
  
"No much going on here." She said to Rebia, who was digging furiously through her bag. "What are you doing, anyway?"  
  
"Looking for something." Rebia groaned. "Crap. I left it in our dorm."  
  
"For the hundredth time, what are you looking for?"   
  
"My dagger."  
  
"I won't even ask." Celestina shook her head. Rebia was too confusing sometimes. She focused her mind on Shampoo, who was a few yards away.  
  
"Rebia?" She didn't bother to keep her tone down.  
  
"Hm?" Rebia looked up.  
  
"Who do you think is going to win?" She was impatient.   
  
Rebia knew that look all too well. Celestina was up to something.  
  
"Gryffindor, obviously." She paused. "Why?"  
  
"No reason. Five galleons they lose." She sat back in her seat. "You know what? I hate cheerleaders." She knew Shampoo had heard her. She wanted it that way. "Everyone can cheer. It's easy."  
  
"What are you doing?" Rebia hissed.  
  
"Do you know all of the cheerleaders of the world's motto?" Celestina grinned an evil grin. She started chanting, loud but clear, and sure enough, Shampoo heard her.   
  
It's a good thing everyone's hooked on the game ... thought Rebia.  
  
"Oh no, the sun! It's bleaching out my hair!" Celestina chanted. "24, 34, I don't even know the score! Go team, fight, fight! Gee, I hope I look all right!" She smirked as Shampoo lost it.  
  
"Why you little-" Shampoo was interrupted by Remus, who was giving a rather loud commentary about Gryffindor scoring the first goal. Shampoo stamped her foot and stalked off, Celestina laughing behind her.  
  
******   
  
Arena arrived at the field later than planned. Once again she had slept in late. She ran a ways up the stands, looking for a good seat. Having no friends, It didn't matter where she sat. She could sit next to a swarm of angry hornets and couldn't care less. But then, with the state her life was in, she didn't care. Hmm... she thought, going up even more stairs. There is no place up here... Suddenly she got an idea. She didn't like it, but it was a sacrifice she was willing to make since she loved quidditch so much. She had tried out for the team, but they were worried she was too underweight. That might prove bad in bad weather. She went to the direct top of the stadium and turned off towards the commentator's box. Opening the door slowly, she slipped inside. Inside sat her worst enemy, Remus Lupin, and her mother. She sat down on the other side of Remus, ignoring her mother's gaze. She had outdone herself. And she did it in a way that wasn't wrong.  
  
******   
  
Meilin watched Narcissa cheer. She doesn't need my help, she thought. She scanned the field, a particularly grassy spot catching her eyes. She won't notice, her mind continued. No one ever does. She made sure Narcissa was busy before taking off. Finally she lay down in the cool grass, a soft breeze ruffling her hair and skirt. She closed her eyes and opened them again, watching the clouds slowly drift by, and occasionally, a Quidditch player flying overhead. Suddenly a strange feeling crossed over her. It was unfamiliar and awkward. "Sirius," she called to the wind. She stood up and tripped. Suddenly her lower body was wracking with pain. She could only think of two things, the pain and Sirius.  
  
******  
  
Lily felt a nervous feeling wash over her. Something was wrong. She looked around at her fellow cheerleaders. She ran her eyes over the field, and noticed Meilin a distance off, laying in the grass. She caught eyes with Peter and beckoned him down on the field. Stubbornly he descended the stairs and met her on the field. She looked up. The professors weren't paying attention, which didn't surprise her. They were more interested watching the game. She didn't blame them, it was a rather interesting sport. Her and Peter jogged towards Meilin, neither able to run.   
  
"Oh God, Peter," Lily panted when they got to the pain-stricken Meilin. "We're going to have to get her to the Hospital wing." She was interrupted by Meilin, who clearly wouldn't have it.  
  
"No," she whispered. "No."  
  
Lily thought for a moment. She wanted what was best for her friend, but she wanted to do her bidding also. "Peter," She said after a minute, "Go get Shampoo. I'm going to need help getting her into the tower." Peter jogged off, clearly annoyed he was missing a game. Meilin rested her head back on the ground, and didn't bother to try and sit up.  
  
"Meilin, What happened? Are you okay?" Lily asked, sitting down next to her.  
  
"I hurt my leg." Meilin murmured. Lily had to lean closer to hear her.   
  
"Do you think you can walk on it?"  
  
"I don't think so."  
  
Meilin opened her eyes as soon as Shampoo had reached them, followed closely by Narcissa and Peter.  
  
Meilin muttered something Lily missed, and Shampoo turned around and gave Peter an order.  
  
******  
  
"Peter? Hello, Peter?" Peter jerked his attention from the game to Shampoo. "As soon as the game is over, go find Sirius and tell him to get his butt up to the Ravenclaw tower. Got it?"  
  
Peter nodded, happy he got to watch the rest of the game. "Narcissa, you're on your own. You can come with us, or you can stay here with Peter. Your choice."   
  
"I'm coming." Narcissa replied shortly. "There's no way I'm going to cheer on my own."  
  
Lily and Shampoo helped Meilin limp up to Ravenclaw tower, where she fell onto her bed and fell almost instantly into sleep.   
  
"C'mon, we'll go wait in the common room." Shampoo said quietly, and went and plopped down in her favorite armchair.  
  
"I think we should take her to Madame Pomfrey." Lily said a few minutes later.  
  
"No." Shampoo had almost the same persistency as Meilin in her voice.  
  
"You know what?" Lily could feel anger welling up inside her. "I think that you know something about Meilin we don't sometimes."  
  
"Maybe I do." Shampoo had an unfamiliar coldness in her voice.   
  
******  
  
Meilin was awaken about an hour later. Her leg hurt worse, and she had a splitting headache. Since she was awake, and no one was there, she decided to write to her penpal, Ken.  
  
Pulling out a couple pieces of parchment and her favorite quill, she dipped it in her favorite red ink.   
  
Dear Ken,   
How are you? If I'm anything, it's somewhere between lonely and okay. If that's possible. How's life in Japan? I miss it terribly. Is anything new over there? How's your brother?  
Hogwarts is great, I guess. Lately, though, I've been wanting something more. But I'm not sure what. Oh, and to answer your last question, Shampoo is STILL trying to get Remus' attention. Good luck to her. Being one of those days, I have nothing more to say. Well, write back soon!  
Your penpal,  
Meilin Hioko Serene  
  
She hesitated a moment, then put her quill back in the drawer. She pulled out an already addressed envelope and stuck the short letter in it. She sealed it and laid it on her dresser, ready for whenever she managed to get to her owl. It didn't look like anytime soon.   
  
She sighed and lay back down in bed. Something really was missing in her life. But how could that be? She had everything; Popularity, many guys falling at her feet, great friends. What could be missing?  
  
******  
  
Skuld watched Gryffindor catch the snitch from her spot on top of the stands. It was a victory to Gryffindor! She cheered along with the rest of the crowd. She watched Remus leave the commentator's box, but what really interested her, was Peter Pettigrew running towards James and Sirius (both of which were being swarmed over by a large crowd).   
  
******   
  
Arena rolled her eyes. Gryffindor never lost a chance to show off. Looking over at Remus, she got an idea. Following Remus closely after the game, she waited until they both got onto the field. She extended her leg, and sure enough, Remus tripped over it. Arena smiled. She loved making other people miserable.  
  
******  
  
Sirius had just got to the Gryffindor tower when Peter caught up with him.   
  
"What?" James asked.  
  
"Girls ... want... Sirius ... in... Ravenclaw... Tower..." Peter panted.  
  
"What for?" Sirius frowned.  
  
"Meilin..." Peter fell over, panting hard.  
  
"Now what?" Sirius grumbled, leaving the tower for the second time that day. 


	15. The Horrific Sleepover

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 15: The Horrific Sleepover   
  
Sirius entered the Ravenclaw common room less than calm. What was going on? The first people he came across were Lily, Shampoo, and Narcissa, in the middle of a Go Fish game, and, in Shampoo's case, eating canned spray cheese.  
"Hello, Sirius." Narcissa said lazily from her spot on the floor.  
"Where's Meilin?" He asked.  
"Upstairs," Shampoo didn't look up from her cards. He sighed and climbed the steps until he reached Meilin's dorm. He pushed the door open quietly, so not to wake Meilin if she was asleep. Meilin was sitting on her bed, looking irritable. She looked up when the door opened, and seemed to be a little more happier.  
"Hello." She said quietly. "It's about time someone comes to say hello. It's rather lonely up here by myself."  
Sirius didn't reply. Meilin stared up at him, expecting a response. Finally, he responded.  
"Yes, I bet it is." Meilin patted the side of her bed, inviting him to come sit by her. Slowly, he did.  
  
******  
  
Stephanie tiredly drug herself up to her dorm. She was half asleep when she opened the door on Meilin and Sirius. Her eyes quickly snapped open.  
"Oh, sorry. I had no clue anyone was in here." Stephanie stepped out of the room quickly and dropped her bag at the door. She ran down the stairs to join the rest of the girls, who were in the middle of a eat-a-thon. Chip bags, chocolate frogs, and every flavor beans littered the floor. So far, It looked like Narcissa was winning.  
Stephanie giggled. The other girls looked up, except Narcissa, who was eating like she haden't had a meal in years.   
"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked, finally able to control her laughter.  
"Uh, what does it look like we're doing?" Shampoo asked. "We're seeing who is more successful at looking like Peter."   
"How very... erm... unique." Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Anyway, you'll never guess what I walked in on!"  
"What?" She had Narcissa's full interest now.  
Before Stephanie could say anything else, a loud voice had entered their conversation.  
"No, what?" A girl with a mocking tone stood behind them, her emerald eyes shining dangerously behind her purple hair.  
"Arena, what are you doing here?" Lily asked in surprise.  
"Is one of you Shampoo? Professor McGonagall wants to see you about some test score." Arena shuddered as she said her mother's name. She refused to admit she was related to her.  
"Yes, now hold on a minute. I want to hear this." Shampoo replied gruffly.  
Arena shrugged and stalked out of the tower. She had no interest in gossip. It bored her.  
Stephanie made sure she was gone, then turned back to her friends.  
"You'll never guess!"   
"Would you tell us already?" Narcissa was getting P.O.  
"Oh, okay. I saw Meilin in our dorm with Sirius Black!!!"   
"Your point?" Shampoo raised a eyebrow.  
"Were they doing something or something like that?" Narcissa was skeptical. "'Cause then it would be amusing."  
"No." Stephanie gave them a wild look. "They like each other!"  
"Duh." Shampoo and Narcissa said in unision.  
"You mean, you knew and you didn't tell me?!"  
"Well, we figured you knew. Haven't you seen them together?" It was Lily's turn for a skeptical look.  
"Well, yes. Of course. But..." Stephanie was intterupted again.  
"He's come to our dorm before, remember?" Shampoo asked.  
"Yes. But I always thought it probably had something to do with a class project or something. You know?"   
"Oh, come on. Who comes to talk to someone else about a project at four in the morning? Now I have to go before Professor McGonagall has a hissy. Anyway, you two are welcome to stay. I shouldn't be too long." Shampoo waved goodbye and went off to see the Professor. Stephanie walked off with an unreadable look on her face.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo came back in a bad mood.   
"What did she want?" Narcissa asked.  
"She wanted to tell me I got the lowest test score and I have to do it again." Shampoo replied grumpily.  
"You know what? I have the perfect idea! I'll be right back!" Lily jumped up and ran out of the room. Narcissa and Shampoo exchanged looks. Lily came back later, a wild grin on her face.  
"What did you do?" Shampoo asked.  
"Blow up Peter?" Narcissa asked.  
"Cause that's something to grin about."  
"No, of course not! You guys really have it in for poor Peter, don't you?" Lily scoffed.  
"What was this idea of yours?" Narcissa asked.  
"Well, I asked Professor Flitwick, since he's the head of Ravenclaw house, if we could have a sleepover in the common room. Well, he agreed!"  
Narcissa and Lily were now jumping up and down in their happiness. Shampoo rolled her eyes.  
"This is going to be a long night." She grumbled.  
  
******  
  
Sirius left about 6. Meilin had fell asleep yet again. But then, he didn't expect her not to. She had seemed tired when he had got there. One minute she was talking to him, next she was leaning on him, asleep. He would come back later. Maybe she would be awake then.  
  
******  
  
Later that night, the girls were all curled by the fire in their sleeping bags.  
"Too bad Meilin couldn't join us." Lily commented.  
"Yeah. Do you think we could wake her up?" Narcissa asked, looking at Shampoo.  
"I wouldn't. She gets a little, erm.., grumpy if you wake her up." Shampoo replied.  
"I've never noticed."   
"Yeah, me neither."  
"No, okay? We're not waking her up."  
"Okay. Don't have a hissy." Narcissa backed up.   
"Sorry." Shampoo responded.  
"Hey, I got an idea!" Narcissa jumped up suddenly. "Let's tell ghost stories!"  
"Yeah!" The other two chorused. They started arguing over who was going to tell the first story. Finally Lily was chosen.  
"Okay. There once was a vampire named Severus Snape." Everyone laughed. Before she could continue, Shampoo was stuttering something about ax murderers.   
"What are you talking about? Our discussion is on vampires." Narcissa raised an eyebrow.   
"No... Turn around!" Shampoo pointed. The other girls turned around, and there, standing behind them, was a guy with an ax. They all screamed and ran past him and out the door. Shampoo ran a different direction than the other two, saying something about going off to find Remus. 


	16. Peter's Offer

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 16: Peter's Offer   
  
Sirius watched the girls run off in fear and laughed. Sometimes there were just so strange. He looked down at his "ax". He had been carrying a couple books and his broom for the past hour or so, and Remus taped the books on to the broom to make it easier to carry. When he left to visit Meilin again, out of Quidditch instinct he grabbed his broom.   
  
******   
  
It took about a week to persuade Meilin to go to the hospital wing, but she finally did. Lily had just dropped her off and was on her way to class when she ran into Shampoo, who was seething.   
"She's in the hospital wing, isn't she?" Shampoo growled.   
"Hey, she wanted to go. I asked her."   
Shampoo muttered something under her breath and stalked off.   
"I wonder what's up with her." Narcissa implied, popping up from behind Lily.   
"Don't do that! How long have you been here?" She asked.   
"I've been following you for a while now." Narcissa laughed. "It's easy. You don't look around, so even a stalker could walk behind you with ease."   
"You are a stalker."   
"That's not nice." Narcissa pretended to pout. "You hurt my feelings."   
"Ok, I'm sorry." Lily laughed.   
"You better get to class. You'll be late. I don't have class until later, so I'm going to go stalk Lucius. Later!" Narcissa left, leaving Lily to race towards class. This was going to be a long day.   
  
******   
  
Meilin and Lily reached the Hospital wing, and after a few questions from Madam Pomfrey, Meilin was allowed to rest again.   
"How did you get hurt? I never see you in here for anything more serious than a cold." Madam Pomfrey asked.   
"Twisted my ankle cheerleading." Please don't ask anymore questions Meilin prayed. To Meilin's luck, she didn't. Instead she said something much worse.   
"You should stay here overnight tonight, and tomorrow you can go back to class. But no cheerleading until this is 100% healed." She walked off, leaving Meilin to her grumbling. She knew how long it would take, and she didn't know how she could stand not cheering for a month. She couldn't wait for a month to pass.   
  
******   
  
Skuld sat on top of the school, letting the wind rip through her hair. It was such a peaceful day... And yet, she had work to do. She was sent to the past with a mission, which so far she had neglected to take care of. She had to keep a close eye on Meilin, make sure she didn't...   
No. She wouldn't think about it. She had hoped against hope she would take after her father, not carry on her mother's secret. But hope was just a strong wish, and for all Skuld knew, wishes never came true.   
Skuld shed a single tear, which she quickly brushed away. The path in front of her was a hard one, but she wouldn't let it get to her.   
  
******   
  
Arena made it her personal business to annoy Remus every chance she got. Which, normally, was a lot. She would trip him, embarrass him, and anything else in her power to make him miserable. Why? She herself didn't know.   
  
******   
  
"Two more days until graduation!" Celestina called out to the rest of the girls in her dorm. Most cheered, some clapped, Rebia just rolled over to face the wall.   
"Who cares? Then we'll just have to get some lame job selling dragon liver or something like that." She grumbled, letting her arm hang off the bed.   
"What's up, Reb?" Melinda, one of Rebia's roommates, asked. "You haven't been yourself lately."   
"As soon as I graduate, I'm moving back to Egypt." Rebia sighed.   
"You're what?!" Celestina almost dropped her bag, which was ready to burst, on her foot.   
"Well, not instantly, but a month into summer I move back to Egypt. It's a done deal."   
"I have the greatest idea! I must go write to my mother this instant!" Celestina rushed out of the room, leaving her dorm mates bewildered.   
"What is she doing?" Melinda asked Rebecca and Felicia, her two best friends and part of Celestina's popularity fan club.   
"No clue." The replied in unison, still staring at the door.   
  
******   
  
Stephanie was by the lake, pondering life, when a rustling snapped her from her thoughts. A small bunny hopped out of the bushes, followed closely by its mother. Stephanie remembered when Meilin had told her about all the different omens. Could this be one?   
  
******   
  
It was over breakfast that Celestina's mother finally replied to her letter. Celestina had asked if Rebia could stay with them for the month she had left. Her mother agreed, but also told Celestina to tell Peter he could invite a friend to stay, too.   
Celestina got up and walked to the end of the table where Peter and his friends where sitting, emerged in conversation.   
"Hey Peter," Celestina said as she prodded him in the back with her well manicured finger.   
"What?" He replied, looking up at her with a stern look.   
"Here." She dropped the letter on his lap and went back to her side of the table. She and Rebia would be stuck with Peter and one of his immature little friends. What a vacation.   
  
******   
  
Peter read the letter and smiled. It would be nice to have someone visit him for a change. Someone besides his sister's friends, who he wasn't too fond of.   
"Hey guys," he said, making Shampoo and Lily stop glaring at each other. "My mom said I could have somebody stay over for a month this summer. Anyone available?" He looked at Sirius and James, who looked at each other and shook their heads. Remus said he couldn't, he was going out of the country with his mom. Peter looked at the girls, who all looked slightly amused. Arena, who had joined them against their will, popped a tattertot in her mouth and shook her head.   
"Have to stay here and help my mom." She grumbled, taking a deep drink of juice from where she burnt her tongue.   
"I'm staying with Lily this summer. We're going to the Bahamas." Narcissa said. Lily nodded in agreement.   
"No can do." Shampoo said. "I'm staying as far away from all of you as possible."   
"And why's that?" Narcissa asked, an eyebrow raised.   
"How else do you expect me to get my catnap?" Shampoo grinned.   
"Stephanie?" Peter asked hopefully.   
"You really want a vampire to stay with you over the summer? That's just asking for death..." Stephanie sighed. "Besides, I'll be in the United States doing some modeling work."   
Shampoo's jaw dropped. "What kind of modeling work?" she asked, interested.   
"Confidential." Stephanie smiled. "You should ask Meilin. She would probably do it if you can wake her from her trance." Stephanie stood up and left. Peter looked at Meilin, who seemed to be staring at the table, deep in trance. Sirius waved a piece of bacon in front of her face, but she didn't seem to notice.   
"What's with her?" Peter asked.   
"Cheerleader depression." Narcissa informed.   
"What's that?"   
"She hasn't cheered for weeks, so she's gone into a kind of deep stupor." Narcissa replied, matter-of-factly.   
Meilin snapped out of her trance, looking around.   
"Sorry, I was daydreaming..." She apologized.   
Peter explained to her about what his mom had said, and surprisingly, she was overjoyed.   
"You mean... Really?" She looked like a little kid on Christmas morning.   
"Yes."   
"Okay! I would love to! I don't know what I would have done if I had to stay here another summer..." She trailed off.   
"You mean you stay here all summer?" Remus asked, taken aback.   
"Sure." She shrugged. "It's kind of lonely though, with only my sisters to keep me company."   
The girls left, (Meilin had to have Narcissa's help,) and so did Peter and Remus, leaving Sirius and James to talk alone.   
"I think you just lost your girlfriend." James said.   
"Nah, she's just being nice. That's what she does." Sirius replied.   
  
******   
  
The graduation ceremony went on for what seemed like forever. Finally, it was over and Rebia and Celestina joined the party, thrown by the rest of the Gryffindors. Narcissa, Meilin, Shampoo, and Stephanie snuck out of the party in Ravenclaw and Slytherin when it was halfway over, and joined the Gryffindors in their celebration. Another Ravenclaw girl joined them later, and when Sirius asked her what her name was, she started conversing in fast Japanese with Meilin.   
"This is my sister Elena." Meilin explained a few minutes later. "She's a year younger than me, so Arena might know her."   
  
******   
  
Skuld watched from her spot above, wishing she too could join in on the party. But rules forbade her to do so. She felt so left out, so alone. Again tears fell down her cheeks. She made no move to wipe them away. No one could see her anyway. 


	17. The Marauder's Map

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 17: The Marauder's Map   
  
Meilin and Shampoo left the party together, Meilin half-asleep and Shampoo extremely hyper. They reached the common room, where everyone was cleaning up. Shampoo pitched in and urged Meilin to go to bed, which she agreed eagerly. She climbed the steps and lay down on her bed, falling asleep almost instantly.   
She fell into a dream. A strange one. She was walking in a desert, and it was really hot. She was wearing foreign clothing that she had never seen in her life. She kept walking, the sand burning her feet, and her skin burning from the hot sun. But still she walked. Something was driving her. Something on the horizon caught her attention. It looked like a pyramid...   
She broke off into a run, and didn't stop until she got there. She stopped at the entrance, and read the hieroglyphics imprinted on the door. She pushed it open, and stepped inside. She walked down the narrow passage, dodging some traps for tomb robbers. She pushed her way into the burial chambers, and found a sarcaughagus and some canopic jars on a table. She swiped at the canopic jars, knocking them off the table. She didn't care. That wasn't what she was there for. She was there for what was in the sarcaughagus, and she wasn't going to leave without it. She opened the sarcaughagus that had been put there only earlier that day. She opened it, and then everything turned white...   
Meilin awoke, sweating. It couldn't be... No, she wouldn't let it.   
"Someone's going to die..." She muttered, sitting straight up.   
  
******   
  
Arena awoke around midnight. She got a sudden urge to go to her favorite place in the world, so she grabbed James' invisibility cloak from his dorm and left. She walked down to the lake and climbed into her favorite tree, where she had a great view. She sat until she had almost fallen asleep, and them was startled awake by a voice next to her.   
"I always knew you had a cat-like attitude, but I never knew you were one..." A mocking voice laughed.   
"What in the shi- Remus, what the hell are you doing here?" Arena growled.   
"This tree is Hogwarts property, so I'm allowed here as much as you are." He smiled.   
"Oh, just go away." Arena snapped. "Better yet, I'll go away. And don't you DARE follow me." She jumped down and crossed the grounds, looking back now and then to see if he was still there. He was.   
  
******   
  
The next morning Meilin still sat on her bed, staring at the ceiling. It was their last day. Tomorrow they would leave, and wouldn't see each other again until after summer break. For her, it got longer and longer every year. Shampoo rolled over and continued to snooze in the early morning sun that was peeking through the windows. Meilin went down to breakfast, and ate her food quickly. She had plans today, and she wanted to get to it as soon as possible. She rushed up to the Gryffindor tower, where the remaining Gryffindors were all packing or walking around the common room grumbling.   
The door to the boys' dorm was shut, so Meilin knocked loudly.   
"Go away." came Peter's voice from inside. "Some people are still sleeping, like me."   
Meilin laughed. "But it's 10 in the morning."   
"So?"   
"Shut up, Peter." James replied. "Why are you here, Meilin?"   
"Well, I came to visit Sirius. Got a problem with that?" she teased.   
"He's not here. He and Remus went off somewhere." He replied.   
"Oh... well, that's too bad." she frowned and left.   
  
******   
  
Sirius and Remus were on the way back to the common room when something caught Sirius' attention. A blue ball of light was floating in the corridor ahead of them. Remus obviously hadn't noticed it, he just continued walking on. Sirius stopped to watch as the ball zigzagged and stopped at the floor. It began to fade and there was a small girl in its place. She had messy black hair and big blue eyes. She turned around, and let out a gasp. She froze, and stood there for a few moments, pondering what to do.   
"Are you lost?" Sirius asked. She didn't respond. "That was a neat trick you did."   
She nodded, clutching the staff in her hands tighter. Remus jogged over, clearly interested in what Sirius was doing.   
"Oh, it's you again. Hello." He said, looking her over.   
"Konnichiwa." She flipped the staff over in her hands.   
"What's your name, anyway?" Remus asked.   
"Skuld."   
Sirius stared from Remus to Skuld. She looked very familiar... Then it hit him. She was the girl in his dream.   
"You're my..." Before he could continue, she said something quickly and pressed her staff to the ground, disappearing instantly. Wait until I tell Meilin about this... he thought.   
  
******   
  
Shampoo managed to roll out of bed at around 11:30. It felt good to sleep. In fact, she would have gone back to bed if she didn't need to pack. She looked around. Stephanie was digging things out from under her bed and throwing them on the bed, and Meilin was nowhere to be seen. Her stuff, however, was all off her dresser and in her trunk, packed up neatly. Shampoo was amazed. "Now why doesn't she stick around and help me?" Shampoo grumbled.   
  
******   
  
"Wow, I never knew I had so much junk!" Stephanie exclaimed, crawling out from under her bed. "I mean, I knew I had a lot of stuff under there, but I never dreamed it was that much!" She sighed and began to shovel the stuff into her trunk, occasionally throwing away some things.   
  
******   
  
Meilin leaned up against the wall, waiting for Sirius. Since she knew she might be waiting for a while, she let her mind drift off. She started to have flashbacks, and try as she could to block them, she couldn't.   
"Look daddy! I found a kitten! Can I keep it?" A four-year-old Meilin sat holding a small black cat, which she had named Shampoo.   
"Most certainly not, you stupid girl. Now leave." the tall man sat at his desk, burrowing through some papers.   
"But-"   
"I told you to leave, now leave!"   
"But you let sissy keep her puppy..."   
"Do you dare question me?" He stood up and smacked the girl. Hard.   
  
Then Meilin had another flashback.   
  
She was older, about 7 now, and she was sitting next to her little sister Elena at a dinner party her parents were hosting. She wasn't allowed to speak, and neither were the rest of the kids. Not unless they were spoken to. Elena started to cry, and their mother made no move to do anything about it. Meilin started to calm her, and after the party, she was called up into her parents' room.   
"Meilin, you stupid idiotic girl, you have disgraced this family once again..."   
  
This time, the memory of the worst day in her known life flashed into her memory. She remembered it very clearly...   
  
She was sitting down by a lake, not far from her mansion home, dangling her feet in the crystal clear water. The bridge she was sitting upon suddenly broke, leaving her to fall into the depths of the lake. She started thrashing, because she never learned how to swim. Finally, she stopped struggling, and, strangely, awoke on the side of the lake. She was soaked, so it couldn't have been a dream. She opened her eyes groggily.   
"How...?" A few feet away from her, splashing around in the water, was a creature she had never seen before.   
"Who are you?" She asked it in puzzlement.   
"I am what you now are." It said in an icy, haunting voice. The strange thing was, when it talked, it didn't move its mouth.   
Meilin stared. "I'm sorry, but I don't understand what you just said."   
"The reason you are alive, is because I gave up part of myself to save you." It's pale, blue eyes blinked. Meilin's eyes ran over the webbed fingers, the scales, the webbed feet. Then she studied herself. She didn't look anything less than a normal human witch. She stared blankly at the the creature, dumbfounded.   
"Listen to me, every two months, at the first night of the waxing moon, you will become a..."   
  
Her line of thought broke off as she stared up at the person shaking her."Wha...?"   
"I was wondering where you were. Shampoo said you weren't there, so this was my next guess." Sirius helped Meilin up, and led her back to his dorm. James was in the process of stuffing everything in his trunk, Remus, who was already finished, was reading a book, and Peter was asleep on his bed, his stuff everywhere.   
"Are you ready to go?" Meilin asked Sirius, who had now taken to lying on his bed.   
"Haven't even started." He murmured.   
"Oh, you are so lazy." Meilin joked. "Want some help? I only have a couple of hours until practice."   
"Meilin... What did Madam Pomfrey say about cheerleading?"   
"Hmm...? Oh, not cheerleading silly, band practice!" She jumped off his bed, and landing with a soft thump. "Now, c'mon if you want help!" Sirius took a few moments to think about it and finally pulled himself out of bed. A couple hours later, they managed to finish packing all his stuff.   
"Would you like to come watch?" Meilin invited, after unrolling the sleeves of her kimono.   
"Wouldn't Shampoo get mad?" He asked.   
"Who cares? Forget Shampoo. I invited you."   
"Sure."   
Meilin made a quick stop by her dorm, and they rushed out the door to the Quidditch field. Shampoo was lying on the ground, singing along to some strange song and Narcissa and Lily were setting up. Meilin quickly assembled her drum set and started playing with her microphone. None of them noticed they were being watched.   
When Shampoo noticed Sirius, she jumped up from where she was sitting.   
"And what do you think you're doing?" She demanded.   
"I invited him." Meilin called out. "He's the guest of honor today." Shampoo went back to her spot, clearly not happy. Narcissa managed to get the last instrument hooked up, and they were ready.   
Shampoo began to sing, and they all picked up on the chorus. "It took six whole hours, and five long days, for all your lies to come undone. And those three small words were way too late. Can't you see that I'm the one?" They finished off the song and Meilin stood up. She walked to where Shampoo was and traded microphones, conversing quietly. Finally, Shampoo went back to Meilin and Lily stepped forward, and Meilin began to speak quietly.   
"This is a song that Lily and I wrote together, and well, yeah..." She signaled Narcissa and Shampoo.   
"I want to run into someone's arms, lie on a bed of roses," she began.   
"I want to feel just like Juliet, I wanna fall in love." Lily continued.   
"I've got a feeling," Shampoo and Narcissa joined in. "Everybody wants someone to love, somebody they can trust somebody they can touch. Everybody wants to give their heart away. Everybody needs a little tenderness, to feel understood, to feel passionate, everybody wants to be in love this way."   
"I know I do, what about you?" Narcissa joined in.   
"I want to be somebody's baby. I want to cry, and still feel beautiful." Meilin took over.   
"I really just want to be myself, Am I the only one?" Lily took control.   
"Everybody wants someone to love, somebody they can trust somebody they can touch. Everybody wants to give their heart away. Everybody need a little tenderness, to feel understood, to feel passionate, everybody wants to be in love this way." All four did the chorus.   
"I know I do, what about you?" Lily and Meilin chorused. "I do, doesn't everybody want to give their heart away, I do. Doesn't everybody want love this way?"   
"Everybody wants someone to love, somebody they can trust somebody they can touch. Everybody wants to give their heart away. Everybody need a little tenderness, to feel understood, to feel passionate, everybody wants to be in love this way."   
"I want feel like an angel; I want to lie, on a beam of moonlight. I want to feel good on the inside; I want to be in love this way." Meilin crooned softly.   
"I want to feel just like Juliet," Lily sang.   
"Everybody need a little tenderness to feel understood, to feel passionate, everybody wants to be in love this way." Narcissa and Shampoo finished.   
Meilin and Lily bowed, and the sound of clapping could be heard from the shadows.   
"When I heard you were holding a band practice I thought you guys would suck." Celestina laughed. "I was so wrong! How would you two like to be famous?" She gestured to Lily and Meilin. "I have friends in the record business, and I'm sure they'd be glad to help you." Lily and Meilin exchanged nervous glances. "Well? What do you say? I'd gladly be your manager."   
Shampoo walked over, teeth clenched. Narcissa soon followed.   
"Look; we're a group, and you're not going to split us up." Shampoo growled. Celestina blinked.   
"Yeah, you get them, you get us. Got it?" Narcissa informed. Celestina stared, then turned back to talk to Meilin and Lily.   
"So... How about it?" she asked. Meilin looked at each person. Lily looked shocked. Celestina was eager. Shampoo and Narcissa looked murderous. Sirius looked confused.   
"I'm sorry, but I can't take your offer." Meilin replied quietly. She had gone rather pale all of a sudden. "Now if you'd please excuse me..." She walked off, and Shampoo watched her leave over her shoulder. With a flicker of her eyes she had turned into a cat, and stalked off after Meilin.   
"Yes, yes. Okay then, I must leave..." Celestina muttered to herself and walked off.   
  
******   
  
Narcissa looked around her. It was just Sirius and her. "Great..." She muttered. "They deserted me."   
The two started off to the castle, not paying much attention. They were being followed closely by Skuld.   
  
******   
  
Meilin dived into the lake and transformed quickly. The water was warm against her scaly skin, and it felt like a warm blanket wrapped around her entire body. She wasn't looking forward to the night in the lake, but she had to.   
The next morning, at around 6:00 a.m., she snuck back up to her dorm. After loading her stuff onto the Hogwarts Express, she joined Narcissa, Lily, Shampoo, and the boys in a compartment.   
"I've been thinking, I think that we should make something." Meilin said to the boys after the other girls went to visit Stephanie and some other girls. "You know something that will make everyone remember the Marauders." The boys thought on it and agreed.   
"But what will we make?" Peter questioned nervously.   
"I've got it!" Meilin suddenly cried out. "We'll make a map that shows every single passage in the school!"   
"Ok." The boys nodded. 


	18. Platform 9 3/4, Again

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 18: Platform 9 3/4, Again   
  
Meilin yawned. It seemed like years had passed since they first met at the beginning of the school year. But they haden't.   
She stared blankly out the window, the accasional trees and meadows flying by.   
"Have any of you seen Arena?" The thought seemed to shoot out of her mouth. She had walked down all the compartments at least three times, and still haden't seen her.  
"No." James muttered, stifling a yawn.   
"Not me. Not that I looked for her, mind you." Remus replied.   
Sirius shook his head and Peter's snores were his only answer.   
"Five minutes until we arrive at the station." Lily reported, sitting down next to James.   
"Whose going to wake Peter up?" Remus asked, looking at his friends.  
"I'm not!" Lily called, racing out of the compartment to stop Shampoo from blowing up half of the train.   
"Me neither." Meilin said, throwing her book back into her trunk.   
"I'll do it. You're all just a bunch of wimps, that's all." James teased.   
"Oh my hero!" Sirius laughed, faking a girlish voice.  
"Speak for yourself." Remus replied. "I got a better person to do it."  
"And whose that?" Narcissa asked, amused.  
"She just walked in the door." He smiled a wicked smile.  
"Hello everyone. I see you're all ready to go." Celestina chirped.   
"Ready and waiting." Sirius smiled, making Celestina laugh.   
"Honestly, you think you'd be planning my death the way you're smiling at me."   
"Watch it, they just might." Rebia's cold voice sent chills down Meilin's spine.   
"Oh Rebia, you worry too much." Celestina smiled. "Now, I see my brother is asleep. Well, someone better wake him up, haden't they?"   
"We tried already, but he just won't wake up. Do you have any ideas?" Remus gave Celestina a puppy-dog look, making her grin.   
"Just leave it to me." She muttered, and bent down and whispered something in Peter's ear, making him wake up almost instantly.   
"Celestina, I'm going to kill you for that." He grumbled.   
"We're here!" Stephanie called, running down the isle.   
"What's she so happy about?" Sirius grumbled.  
"What's wrong with you?" Meilin asked.  
"I'm spending part of the summer with my mom's friend and her daughter."  
"What's so bad about that?"  
"You try living with Sandra and you'll think 'what's so bad?'."  
"Will you miss me?" She teased.  
"Now what do you think?"   
"Would you lovebirds move it? I have places to go, people to see, tuna to eat..." Shampoo grumbled, shoving past them.  
"Isn't she staying with you?" Sirius asked, watching her go.  
"Nope. She doesn't stay with me all summer. She's allowed to have vacations, too." Meilin replied, waving to Stephanie, who was standing next to a tall witch who also looked like a vampire.  
"Her mom, I suppose." Meilin muttered under her breath.  
"Hey Meilin, c'mere a minute!" Lily called over the bustle of the crowd, barely audible.   
"Yes?" Meilin asked, joining her and Narcissa.   
"Send me an owl this summer, k?"   
"Me too!" Narcissa said, bouncing up and down.  
"Sure." Meilin quickly looked around, searching for Peter and Celestina.  
"Meilin, I want you to meet my parents before I leave..." Sirius said, walking up behind her again.  
"Oh, sure. Of course."   
  
******  
  
Arena sighed. Another wasted summer gone by with no one to talk to. This was going to be a long, boring couple of months. Better get started on her homework.  
  
******  
  
"It's almost finished!" Skuld said to herself as she signed her name on the top of her paper. "I'm done!" She jumped off her perch, landing with a soft thump. She had been filling out a paper for Dumbledore, and it had taken her less than an hour.   
  
******  
  
"Nikki, where's mum?" Sirius asked a teenage girl who looked murderous. But then, she probably was.   
"No idea. Who's she?" Nikki glared at Meilin, making Meilin cautious to say anything, for fear of being attacked by the strange girl.  
"None of your business." Sirius replied pushing past her.   
"Gomen ne sei." Meilin apologized, following him. "Sirius, I better go."  
"Yes, I guess you should. See ya next year!"  
Sooner than that... Meilin thought. "Sayanora!" She pushed through the crowd, finally spotting Rebia and Celestina. She fought her way over to them, and soon was joined by Peter.   
"Where's mum and dad?" He asked sleepily.  
"They're late." Celestina said aloud, looking around.   
"Hmm..." Rebia muttered. "What's that?"   
"What's what?" Meilin and Celestina asked in unison.   
"That." She pointed to a ticket booth. "I wonder..." She trailed off, leaving Meilin and Peter looking at each other.  
"Rebia! Come back!" Celestina yelled, chasing after her. Peter and Meilin laughed.  
  
******  
  
Arena drifted into an exaughstive sleep, and finally woke up. She shivered, not from cold but from the chilling memory of the past. She got up, and deciding quickly, made her way through the castle.   
  
******  
  
Finally, Peter and Celestina's mother arrived. She looked a lot like Celestina, except not as skinny.   
"Well, Hello, Rebia, Meilin." She greeted.  
"Konnichiwa, thank you for letting me stay." Meilin stopped, not sure Peter's family knew Japanese.  
"No problem. I enjoy it when Celestina and Peter have friends visit."   
"Thank you also." Rebia said in her normal drawling tone.  
"You're welcome, dear. Can't let you leave without visiting." They followed her outside, and to a nearby house, where she greeted the witch who lived there warmly, then pulled out a bag of floo powder. This had to be Meilin's least favorite way of traveling.  
"Peter, you can go first." She said, and Peter dissapeared. Soon after, Rebia, Celestina, and Meilin had also arrived.   
Meilin shook some soot out of her hair and off her clothes, then took a good look around. It looked just like any wizarding house, she guessed, considering she never went to anything less than a mansion. 


	19. Truth or Dare?

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 19: Truth or Dare?   
  
Meilin's observations were disturbed by something fuzzy rubbing up against her leg. She looked down, and Nefertiri made a furious move to scratch her. She jumped back, smacking into Peter.   
  
"Sorry," She apologized. "I didn't mean to hit you."   
  
"It's okay." He replied. "C'mon, my room's this way." He led her down the hallway, and she followed.   
  
******   
  
"Wow, It's really warm." Lily commented, setting up a lawn chair in the sand. Narcissa, who was putting on sunscreen, nodded.   
  
"What do expect down by the equator, Lily? Snow?" She replied, and Lily rolled her eyes.   
  
"Shut up, Narcissa."   
  
Narcissa stuck out her tongue and narrowly avoided being hit by a beach ball. "That wasn't nice!" she scoffed.   
  
"Ha ha, you deserved it."   
  
"Did not!" She ran off towards the water, splashing as she jumped. "Come on in, Lily, the water's fine!"   
  
"All right, no one wants me to read this book this summer, do they?" She placed her book on her chair and raced after Narcissa.   
  
******   
  
"Hopefully not to much farther..." Shampoo groaned as she climbed the street. Suddenly, a dog came rushing at her, scaring her up a tree.   
  
"This is NOT how I planned to spend my summer vacation!"   
  
******   
  
Arena wondered to herself out loud. "Can I really do this?" She sighed and took off one of her lace gloves that she had worn for as long as she could remember, and no matter what the consequences, she never took them off, either. She placed her bare hand against the wall, letting the memories flow into her mind.   
  
******   
  
Rebia sat on Celestina's bed, popping bonbons into her mouth and continued watching the television. Never in her life had she seen an object like this, one that played pictures, at least.   
  
"Explain this again?" She asked, watching Nefertiri jump onto the bed.   
  
"It's a smuggle invention. They use it as a form of entertainment." Celestina replied, zapping a guy on her video game.   
  
"Take that, and that, and that..."   
  
"Nefertiri, do you understand this at all?" She asked her cat, who stared at her in bewilderment. It meowed quietly, as if pondering what was going on.   
  
******   
  
"Wired activation...." Skuld thoughtfully tapped something on her staff, making shrink. "Interesting." She muttered, jumping off the chair she was on, heading for the kitchens. "No genius like myself can work on an empty stomach!"   
  
******   
  
"Are you going back to school after you leave here?" Peter asked, trying to make small talk.   
  
"No, I have plans... First, I shall make a visit to someone, then the annual Japanese Festival is going on in America, so I've decided to round up a few of the girls and go." Meilin said thoughtfully.   
  
"Meilin, could you help me a minute?" Peter muttered, starring blankly at his History of Magic essay. "I don't honestly get this time period."   
  
"Hmm? Oh, yes... Let's see, Medieval times? No, that's wrong, and that..." Meilin pulled his paper away from him, looking it over. "Oh dear, this is all wrong." She pulled out her quill and began to scratch it all out. In the end, she practically did the whole thing for him.   
  
"Thank you, now I don't have to do it." Peter smiled evilly. "You wouldn't mind doing the rest of my homework, now would you?"   
  
"Hey now, don't push it." She laughed. "I'm here to relax, not be the information station."   
  
"You're a poet and I didn't know it."   
  
"I suppose I am. Is there something wrong with that?"   
  
"No, not really."   
  
There was a few minutes' pause, in which Peter's pet rat scuffled around its cage.   
  
"It's not fair."   
  
"What?" Meilin asked, puzzled.   
  
"You're smart, you're talented, you're funny, it's just not fair."   
  
"Peter, dear, I never knew you wanted to be a girl." Celestina's voice mocked. "Hello, all. How is everything, are you finding your stay enjoyable?" She asked, faking an airline attendant's tone, and jumping on Peter's bed.   
  
"Quite." Meilin replied politely.   
  
"That's good."   
  
"What do you want, Celestina?" Peter grumbled.   
  
"Oh, right. Meilin, would you come here for a minute? I'd like to show you my room..." Her voice trailed off as she stepped out of the room. "Follow me."   
  
"Back in a minute, Peter." Meilin got to her feet and followed apprehensively.   
  
"This way," Celestina led her into a room that looked like it came right out of Hollywood. She pushed Meilin gently in, locking the door behind her.   
  
"Okay, now we can start." Rebia said from her chair.   
  
"Start what?" Meilin asked in amusement.   
  
"Why, Truth or Dare, of course." Celestina waved her hand impatiently. "Okay, only three chickens per game."   
  
"None. It's more fun that way."   
  
"Okay then, none. No chickens. You have to do the dare." Celestina smiled. "Rebia, you first."  
  
"Celestina, truth or dare?"   
  
"Truth." She flashed a hesitant smile. Rebia had been known to come up with strange questions.   
  
"Who do you think is the cutest 6th year boy?"   
  
"As in, 6th going into 7th?"   
  
"Yes."   
  
"Oh well... Diggory's cute, and so is Potter. Ah, Diggory, I guess. Meilin, truth or dare?"   
  
"Truth..." She said cautiously.   
  
"Okay, what's your deepest, darkest secret?" Celestina said sweetly, her voice full of innocence. "And don't worry, we won't tell anyone."   
  
Meilin hesitated. Should she tell them? Or should she make something up? 


	20. The Letters

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
"I can tell that you're feeling me,  
and from the corner of my eye I see you checkin' me,  
but you can't ask, boy, 'till I say so." ~3LW  
(I've listened to this and 'As If' while doing this chapter.)  
  
Chapter 20: The Letters   
  
"What? Oh, what was the question again?" Meilin stalled.   
  
"What's your deepest, darkest secret?" Celestina repeated.   
  
"Oh, that would be that I don't have one." Meilin lied.   
  
"Oh," Celestina said, looking displeased. "Your turn."   
  
"Heh heh... umm, Rebia, truth or dare?" She asked, trying to think of something.   
  
"Truth." Rebia muttered.   
  
"Who do you think is the cutest guy at school?"   
  
"Potter." Her reply made Meilin laugh.   
  
"Seriously."   
  
"Seriously."   
  
Their game was suddenly interrupted by the announcement of dinner, which they gladly welcomed.   
  
"So, what's Egypt like, Rebia?" Mrs. Pettigrew asked politely.   
  
"Sandy. Hot. A desert." Rebia answered shortly.   
  
"Oh. That's nice. How about you, Meilin? Where are you from?"   
  
"Japan." Meilin replied, not used to having a conversation like this.   
  
"I bet all the cherry blossoms are beautiful this time of year."   
  
"Yes, they are."   
  
There was a few minutes awkward silence, in which Peter shoved 3 more pieces of pizza down his throat.   
  
"Meilin," Rebia said suddenly. "You're a cheerleader, right?"   
  
"Yes."   
  
"Think you could do something for me later?"   
  
"I guess so."   
  
"Good." They ate the rest of their meal in silence, and then Meilin followed as Rebia led her outside.   
  
******   
  
"Not much farther..." Shampoo collapsed onto the doorstep of a house, and then looked up at the house number. It was right; she was where she intended to be.   
  
******   
  
"That was so much fun!" Narcissa explained, walking back into the hotel room she shared with Lily.   
  
"That... was ... so ... frightening." Lily heaved, falling on her bed. "Let's never do that again, okay?"  
  
"Awe, c'mon Lily. You know you enjoyed it." Narcissa smiled.   
  
"I don't consider jumping off a high tower fun, Narce."   
  
"It's not just jumping, it's bungee jumping! I know, we'll do it again tomorrow!"   
  
"NO!"   
  
"Just a thought..."   
  
The two lay on their beds, resting. "Lily?" Narcissa asked suddenly.   
  
"What?" Came Lily's muffled response, for she had her head buried in her pillow.   
  
"Where's the nearest post office? Non-muggle post-office, I mean."   
  
"Down the street."   
  
"Great! Let's go!" Narcissa pulled Lily to her feet and dragged her out of the room.   
  
******   
  
Stephanie sighed, looking out the window of the plane. Hadn't Remus said something about going to America, also? Yes, she was sure he had. But what were the chances of running into him? Very slim, indeed.   
  
She laid her head back, resting her eyes. She groped blindly for her headphones, and closed her fingers around the cold metal of the bottom of the seat. She yawned, and lay back, ready for a nice nap.   
  
"I'm surprised to see you here." A voice laughed. She jerked her head up, and it took a few moments for her to register what she was seeing.   
  
"Remus?" She questioned. He laughed again.   
  
"You were expecting the grim reaper?"   
  
"No, you just surprised me, that's all."   
  
He sat down next to her, and she started to stare out the window again, listening to the drone of the airplane's engines.   
  
******   
  
The night air was crisp, and Meilin watched the moon's reflection in the nearby river.   
  
"What is it you want me to do, Rebia?" She asked, shivering.   
  
"Spot me." Rebia said, looking for a perfect location.   
  
"What?"   
  
"Spot me." She repeated, smoothing some grass with her foot. "You know, spotting?"   
  
"Oh." It hit Meilin what she wanted her to do, and she laughed. "I can do that."   
  
Rebia did some complicated gymnastic moves, and Meilin watched, amused. "No, you do the ending more like this," She said, doing a triple round off. She landed, and fell on her knees, but stood up easily. "I'm rusty from not practicing." She muttered, and spotted Rebia again.   
  
"What's with girls and doing really dangerous moves?" Peter asked, watching from a lawn chair. Celestina came outside, carrying a glass of lemonade and a pair of sunglasses. She lay on a lawn chair, sunglasses on, lemonade in hand.   
  
"Celestina, I hate to spoil you little daydream, but the sun's not out." Peter sniggered.   
  
"Oh, I know." Celestina replied coolly.   
  
"Then what are you doing?"   
  
"I'm getting a moon tan."   
  
Peter, Meilin, and Rebia all started laughing. Celestina beamed up at them from over the rim of her sunglasses. "And what's so funny?" She asked, looking quite dangerous.   
  
"Oh nothing." Peter replied, still laughing.   
  
"Better not be."   
  
******   
  
The next morning, Meilin was awakened by the smells of breakfast. When she went downstairs, she was greeted by four large barn owls, which were each sitting at four of the five plates. Celestina soon came in afterwards, followed by Rebia.   
"Where's Peter?" Rebia asked, in a casual I-don't-care tone.   
  
"He'll sleep till noon. Oh goodie, mail!" Celestina grabbed the letter from the owl and opened it, which amazed Meilin. Why would Rebia and Celestina be getting mail from Hogwarts after they'd graduated? Still thinking, she didn't notice Peter had joined them until the owl carrying her letter nipped her softly.   
  
"Oh, I'm sorry." She said, detaching the letter from it. She noticed it was way thicker than normal, but that didn't really bother her. She opened it up, and after reading the supply list, she found another paper. The note said to open the other letter (which she hadn't noticed that it was still tied to the owl's leg, also), to get her new badge. She didn't open it right away, figuring it was just another prefect badge. Instead, she helped herself to some eggs and toast.   
  
After breakfast was over, she had forgotten completely about the letter, until she noticed Rebia and Celestina being quieter than normal, which was very strange. Noticing that they were both still holding their letters, she dashed back upstairs for the second envelope, which she had stashed in her trunk.   
  
She opened it slowly, and out came a letter and a shiny badge unlike her prefect badge. Not paying much attention to it, she directed her thoughts to the letter in her hands. It said;   
  
Dear Mrs. Serene,   
We are informing you that you have become Hogwarts' new Head Girl. Congratulations!   
Sincerely,   
Professor Minerva McGonagall   
Deputy Headmistress   
  
Meilin stared in disbelief at the letter, then at the badge. She stuck them both in her trunk, deciding to wait until the train ride back to school to tell anyone about it. Now she just had to keep it a secret for that long.   
  
******   
  
Arena slipped her lace glove back on, and frowned. "Chamber of secrets?" she mumbled. "So there is a chamber of secrets... Just were is it?"   
  
******   
  
Skuld ran down some corridors, having no real place to be. Since school was out, and very, very few students remained, she was allowed to let up some of her guard. Peevishly, she spotted Mr. Filch's office door ajar. She moved closer to it, and after saying some words, managed to stick yards and yards of a silly string like substance all over everything in his office. Without another word, she bolted, laughing. 


	21. Sirius' Unexpected Guest

Chapter 21: Sirius' Unexpected Guest  
  
The rest of Meilin's month at Peter's was filled with homework, sleeping late, strange movies that mad no sense at all, and lots of letters from her friends in various countries, Like Lily and Narcissa in the Bahamas, Shampoo in Britain, Stephanie and Remus in the US, and James at home. She replied back to each one, and then sent them off, borrowing a few owls from the post office nearby. But still no word from Sirius, even after she had sent him at least twelve letters over the past few weeks. But she didn't think much of it, he was probably having a lot of fun and didn't have time to respond.   
  
As she left Peter's house on the last day of her stay, she walked to the nearest muggle train station, going to catch a ride to Great Britain, then probably go back to Hogwarts. She watched the scenery outside keep changing, and wondered about various things; how do muggles live without magic, anyway, for starters. As the train pulled to a stop, she got out and walked a little less than a mile, finally seeing a huge house surrounded by trees. Mesmerized, she walked up a small rock path leading to the house, and knocked on the front door. The doorknob turned slowly, as if the person inside was debating to open the door. It opened, and Meilin came face to face with Nikki.  
  
"Go away." She mumbled, shutting the door. Meilin frowned.  
  
******  
  
"Who was it, Nikki?" Sirius asked sleepily, looking for any reason to escape the torture in his room.  
  
"The wind." Nikki muttered, heading back up the stairs, and Sirius rolled his eyes. Nikki didn't like it when anyone came to the door, unless it was for their parents, but he could tell she didn't like them, either. And he didn't blame her for that.  
  
"I'm sorry abou- Meilin, what are you doing here?" He asked, surprised.   
  
******  
  
"I came to visit. Hope I didn't come at a bad time." She smiled happily, and he shook his head.  
  
"Perfect timing." He sighed, hearing footsteps behind him.  
  
"Something wrong?" Meilin asked slowly.  
  
"Sirius, what are you doing?" A female voice behind them called.   
  
"Hello, Sylvia." He grumbled.  
  
"Oh, hello. Are you lost?" Sylvia asked Meilin, confused.  
  
"No."  
  
"Are you selling cookies?"  
  
Meilin laughed. "No," She said again. "I'm not."  
  
"Then what are you doing here?"  
  
"I came to visit Sirius, of course." She smiled. "Would you be another sister?"  
  
"No." Sylvia suddenly became very cold. "What do you want with my darling?"  
  
"Your darling?" Since when?" Sirius sputtered.   
  
"I'm his girlfriend, that's what." Meilin could feel her anger rising.  
  
"You must be joking... You, his girlfriend? Don't make me laugh."  
  
"Baka. You are so foolish."   
  
"You are foolish to think you could ever impress my darling!" Sylvia yelled.  
  
"Didn't take much, did it?" A voice said from behind them.  
  
"James!" Meilin said, turning around.  
  
"'Lo." He replied, watching Meilin and Sylvia argue.  
  
"May I ask what you are doing here, James?" Sirius asked.   
  
"Nothing, really. What's with them?"  
  
"Don't ask."  
  
******  
  
Arena stepped around the cold, dark dungeon that was the Chamber of Secrets. Would she have something to tell the others when they got back! She walked further into the tunnel, and came upon a statue of Salazar Slytherin.  
  
"The big guy himself." She cocked an eyebrow and smiled. "Too bad I'm not in his house. Then I really would have an excuse to be in here." She scuffed her shoe against the ground, and sat down quietly. She made a ring of candles, and lit each one. Sitting inside her ring, she watched shadows flicker around. Pulling out a book of Edgar Allan Poe, she began to read, not noticing the sound of a Basilisk behind her.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo climbed into the tree in the front yard and waited patiently for her chance to get into the house. But no chance came.   
  
"Just my luck. No one's home."  
  
******  
  
"I wish someone was here to talk to." Skuld sighed, watching the clouds roll by. "It's so lonely..." She closed her eyes and rolled down the slope a few feet, finally jumping up. "I wonder where Arena is?"  
  
******  
  
Stephanie laughed as Remus finished his joke. She looked around at the tall skyscrapers of New York City. "It's so big." She said in awe.  
  
"Mmm hmm... Wonder where our moms went?" He replied, looking around.  
  
"Dunno, but I have another photoshoot in an hour. What do you say we go shopping until then?"  
  
******  
  
"Another tiring day. Too bad we're leaving next week." Narcissa sighed as she looked out over the ocean. "Hey, let's not waste our time." She pulled Lily's book out of her hands. "I know! Let's pick up some cute guys and make Shampoo and Meilin totally jealous!"  
  
"Houston, we have a girl. Since when do you go guy patrolling?" Lily asked grumpily.  
  
"Since always! Good grief, Lily, get a boyfriend!"  
  
"I have plenty. They're boys, and they're friends."  
  
"Not a boy friend, and boyfriend! Oh, oh! Cut guy, cute guy!"  
  
"And why would Meilin be jealous? She has Sirius. And I have James. What more could we want?"  
  
"You are such a-" But whatever Lily was, she didn't find out.  
  
******  
  
"I give up. Let him decide." Meilin said quietly. She was tired of fighting with Sylvia.  
  
"Fine. We will let Sirius decide which of us is better." Sylvia agreed. "Sirius? Which of us do you choose?"   
  
"Heh heh..."  
  
A/N: Please review. No flames! Who will Sirius choose? What will happen to Arena? Why didn't Narcissa finish her sentence? Find out in the next chapter. 


	22. Stephanie's Perfect Date

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!

Chapter 22: Stephanie's Perfect Date  
  
"Well?" Sylvia demanded impatiently. "Who is it?"  
"Yes, Sirius, who?" Meilin asked. "It really doesn't matter to me who you pick."  
"Back off, sister! He's mine!" Sylvia implored, shoving Meilin. Meilin frowned and muttered something, which sounded like a curse.   
"There, they'll be no more out of you." She said, watching as Sylvia tried to talk with her lost voice. "Now, who is it?"  
"Umm..." Sirius hesitated, causing James to laugh even more. "Arena."  
"Arena?!" James and Meilin said at the same time.  
"Yes."  
"Why Arena, Sirius?" James asked in a fake innocent tone.  
"Well, if I don't say Arena, she'll hurt me really badly." Sirius grinned, and they both started laughing.  
"Yes, I suppose she would." Meilin admitted.   
  
******  
  
Arena placed her book down and looked around. Something was watching her... but what? She turned behind her, and her eyes shone the reflection of the candles around her. Behind her was a basilisk, the creature said to haunt the Chamber of Secrets. Arena blinked, staring it straight in the eyes. "Go away." She said after a minute, but the snake refused to budge. "Leave!" She demanded, and again the snake refused. She picked up a candle and set it in the middle of her and the snake.   
  
******  
  
"Is that Snape?" Narcissa asked, looking across the beach.  
"What?" Lily twisted out of her chair and looked around. She blinked and rubbed her eyes, making sure she wasen't seeing things. "Yes," she said after a minute. "I think it is."   
"Hey Snapey-o!" Narcissa called, and Lily burst out laughing. He turned and stared at them, and Narcissa ran up to him, followed by Lily.  
"And what would you be doing here?" Narcissa asked.  
"I was going to ask you the same thing." He muttered.  
"Just chilling out. You?"  
"Getting ingredients for a new potion I'm trying." He said, his voice icy cold.  
"And you came to the Bohamas just for that?" Lily said, surprised.  
"That's really none of your business, now is it? I must go now." He turned and left, leaving Narcissa and Lily staring at each other.  
"He needs an attitude ajustment." Lily scoffed.  
"Righty-o then. Let's get some pizza!" Narcissa suggested, and they went off, laughing about their own ridiculous ideas of what Snape was up to.  
  
******  
  
"Okay... connect this to this... and that..." Skuld stared at her invention. Using items she brought with her from the future, she was attempting to break the barrier between Hogwarts and electronic items. "Maybe if I turn it that way..." She turned the computer diagonal, and a funny clicking noise was being made from the screen. She walked over to it, and typed in her name and password.  
"Password accepted." The computer chirped.  
"Yes! Now let's get down to some hacking, Navi." (A/N: Navi is a type of computer.) Skuld said, looking at the sheet of codes next to her computer.   
"CIA, Muggle schools, hmm... oh the possibilities!"  
  
******  
  
Shampoo meowed impatiently, hoping for someone to open the door. She had been sitting in the tree for at least three days now, and was getting very tired. She meowed, and a sudden barking nearly made her fall out of her tree.   
Oh great... she thought. I'm about to become cat-cabobs. Nice way to die...  
She hissed, causing the dog to be alarmed, and jumped down. She chased it through the garden and around the house, until she got slightly dizzy, but kept going.   
"Now that's something you don't see everyday. A cat chasing my dog." A male voice said.  
  
******  
  
Stephanie muttered darkly as she headed towards her dressing room. "I guess when they said modeling isn't all glamour, they weren't joking." She looked on her dresser, noticing a letter.   
"Who's this from?" she asked, staring at it. She flipped it over, recognizing the smooth, fancy handwriting. "Meilin..." She muttered, wondering what her friend was doing. She slitted the envelope, and pulled the parchment out.  
Reading the letter over a few times, she scribbled a response and gave it to her owl, opening the window.   
She flopped down on her bed, recalling her date last week.

"I have two tickets to a concert tonight. Want to go?" She recalled herself saying. 

"Sure, why not?" Remus laughed. She blushed and smiled, walking over to a electronic photo booth.   
"I've always wanted to try one of these!" She exclaimed. "C'mon!" She grabbed his arm and dragged him in. They posed a few times, then went to collect their pictures. Remus laughed as her saw the last one, they had both died laughing, making them look ridiculously funny. After that, they went to lunch, talking about various things, such as what they would do with a million galleons.   
"I would buy my own punk band." Stephanie said after a moment of deep thought. Remus laughed.  
"Really?"  
"Really. I totally dig punk bands. Oh, that reminds me, I have fifth row seats for tonight. We'll be right up front."  
"Great!"  
"Hmm, I better get back or they won't let me go tonight. Meet ya in front of the theater!" She called, racing out of the resteraunt.  
  
That night, they had met in front of the theater as planned. She was dressed in jeans and a extra large black t-shirt, and her hair was up in a ponytail.   
They took their seats, and Stephanie started talking to a girl on her right. When the band started up, she sang along with them.  
"Her name is Noelle, I have a dream about her. She rings my bell, I 've got gym class in half an hour. Oh how she rocks, in Keds and gym socks, but she doesn't know who I am, and she doesn't give a damn about me. 'Cause I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby, I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby. Listen to Iron Maid and maybe with me.  
"Her boyfriend's a nut, he brings a gun to school. And he'd simply kick my butt if he knew the truth. He lives on my block, he drives and I rock. But he doesn't know who I am, and he doesn't give a damn about me. 'Cause I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby, I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby. Listen to Iron Maid and maybe with me. No, she doesn't know what she's missing, yeah.   
" I feel like mold, it's prom night and I am lonely. Low and behold, she's walking over to me. This must be fake, my lip starts to shake. How does she know who I am? And why does she give a damn about me?  
"I've got two tickets to Iron Maid and baby, came with me Friday, don't say maybe. 'Cause I'm just a teenage dirtbag baby, like you.  
"She doesn't know what she's missing."   
  
******  
  
"I had fun tonight." She had said to Remus later. "Thank you." She leaned over a kissed him on the cheek, then smiling, turned and left.

She smiled to herself, replaying the night in her head. 

A/N: Well, the next chapter should be up soon. I'm giving me editors a break, Thanks again Davita and Shann!!!, Hmm, I don't own the song Teenage Dirtbag, but I really like it. If you know who sings it, email me!!! Why hasen't Arena died? What is Stephanie up to, going after Shampoo's guy? What's Meilin gonna do next? Find out in the next chapter!  



	23. T-shirt Party

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 23: T-Shirt Party  
  
Arena sat the candle down, and once again, demanded the snake to leave. It hissed, and turned, leaving Arena.  
  
"Now it's time to do what I really came down here for." She muttered, shutting her book.   
  
******  
  
Skuld shut down the computer, and picked it up. In a little over a month, school would be in session again. Then it would be time for her to go into action. No more sneaking around, causing mischief. Now she could attend classes under special circumstances. What fun! But yet, it was going to be harder than ever with the new disguised LEP officer around. LEP officers were the police force of magical creatures, who wouldn't approve of her even being around. So she'd have to be extra careful. The fate of the future depended on it.  
  
******  
  
Shampoo turned- it couldn't be, could it? No, it wasn't. It wasn't Remus at all. It was his dad. She meowed pitifully, trying to get him to let her in and give her something to eat. She was starving. It worked.   
  
He opened the door and let her in, into the nice warm house. He even set a plate of tuna in front of her! Sheer bliss! Heaven! Food!  
  
After her meal, she decided to explore, making sure to stay far away from the sheltie Remus kept as a pet. She climbed the stairs, and just when she was about to give up, found Remus' room. He wasn't home, but according to his dad (on the phone), he would be home later that day. And she'd be waiting.   
  
***  
  
When Shampoo next woke up, it was to the sound of the door downstairs being closed. She yawned, quietly waiting. About 30 minutes later, she decided to go look for him herself. When she got to the stairs, the sound of footsteps scared her back into his room. She curled up on the bed, all part of her plan, of course.  
  
She watched quietly as Remus came in, threw his stuff down, grumbling, and began looking for something in his messy, disorganized room. She sat up, and meowed loudly, causing him to jump and look for the source of the sound. He noticed her, and blinked.   
  
"Shampoo?!"   
  
******  
  
Lily led the way to the nearest Pizza parlor, Narcissa trailing behind.   
  
"Good grief, it's packed!" Narcissa exclaimed. There was a line ten stores down. Lily gawked, amazed.   
  
"Wonder why? It wasn't so packed yesterday." She said quietly.  
  
"I say we get Chinese!"   
  
"How about the sushi bar? It's closer, and less expensive." It was Lily's turn to pay for lunch, and she was almost broke. After buying everyone souvenirs, she was down to 3 muggle dollars.   
  
Narcissa shrugged. "I don't care, I'm just hungry..." Her attention was attracted by something else. She still had money, unlike Lily; in fact, she still had over 100 muggle dollars. "Hey, Lil, let's go in there!"   
  
It was one of those tourist shops, the perfect place for Narcissa to blow her cash. She'd been a scrimp the entire trip, except when it came to food, and still had to get souvenirs for everyone.   
  
"Whatever, but please hurry. I'm hungry, too." Narcissa raced inside, money in hand. She came out with 10 shirts, and when they got to the sushi bar, showed them to Lily, who was busy shoveling rice in her mouth. The first one Narcissa showed her was Arena's, and Lily started to laugh. On the front it said, "Better dead..." and on the back, it continued. "Then Co-ed". Arena hated the fact Hogwarts was co-ed. That was all Lily really knew about her.  
  
After she stopped laughing, Lily managed to ask, "Why'd you get a shirt for Arena? We hardly know her."  
  
"Well," Narcissa said through a piece of sushi. "She always looks so lonely. Shouldn't we try to make friends with her? And wouldn't it be nice to get her something?"   
  
"I guess." Lily said. Something about Arena chased people away from her. But she did always seem to be alone. "You know, you're the first Slytherin I've ever met who would actually bother. I think you've been hanging around us too long!" Narcissa smiled.   
  
"I've got more." She pulled out a blank, white shirt. Lily frowned.   
  
"Who's that for?" She asked, still frowning.  
  
"Meilin. But it isn't a boring as you look. Actually, quite the contrary. I've enchanted it so that it tells what the person wears it is thinking."  
  
"This I have to see. Go on."  
  
"Well, I got Stephanie a plain, black shirt, and enchanted it so whatever the heck she's singing, sometimes I can't understand her, it shows the lyrics."  
  
Lily rolled her eyes. Leave it to Narcissa to come up with something like that. "Continue."  
  
"Peter's is my personal favorite..." Narcissa smiled devilishly, then pulled out one that said, "Compare me to a rat. Am I cute now?"   
  
"He'll kill you, you know."   
  
"Yes, but it suites him perfectly!"   
  
"Now for me. Not really funny, but I didn't like the other ones in there." Now she was holding one that said, "I want attention.." then turned it around, "Just not yours."   
  
"Now for Jamsies!" Narcissa said, causing Lily to give her a disgruntled look. She hated when Narcissa called him that. His said, "Cheerleading= Death". It was no mystery he hated cheerleading. None at all. Even though he didn't mind winning due to them, he still thought the sport was pointless.   
  
"He'll like that a lot." Lily agreed. "Now who?"  
  
"Well, we all know Sirius really likes to talk in class, so wala!" She had got him a red shirt that said "I will not talk in class" with the not crossed out.   
  
"Yours." She pulled out a navy blue shirt a tossed it to Lily, who caught it. It said, "Contents under pressure", which was normally how she felt.   
  
"Shampoo's." She pulled out another that said "I will not kiss the boys" 20 times, front and back.   
  
"She'll love it." Lily said.   
  
"And last but not least, Remus. Have you noticed the way he looks at Steph? And her favorite thing to do is go to rock shows, so I found this." It was a black shirt that said "I fell in love with the girl at the rock show".  
  
"I dunno, Narce. I think they're just friends." Lily said.  
  
"No. Trust me, they're not."  
  
******   
  
Meilin followed Sirius and James upstairs to one of the three guest bedrooms (Sylvia had gone to complain to her mother).   
  
"You can stay here." Sirius said, flipping on the lights. It was huge! Not as big as her room in Adieu, her family's manor, but a pretty good size.   
  
"Thanks." She said quietly. Something was bugging her. Something she'd forgotten about.  
  
"I'll meet you downstairs in 15 minutes." Sirius said, watching her.  
  
"Okay." She agreed, shutting the door behind them. When they were gone, she pulled her stuff out of her trunk. She put her books neatly on the dresser, her assortment of crystal balls in different places, and the rest of her stuff wherever she felt it looked the best. Last but not least, she pulled out a long, thin mirror. Tapping it with her wand, it grew to its full height. She placed a ring of candles around it, and looking at the clock, rushed back to the stairs. When she reached the top step, she noticed Nikki looking at her.  
  
"Hello." She said cautiously, careful not to make the girl mad.  
  
"What's between you and my brother?" Nikki asked, not bothering to make any sort of greeting.   
  
Meilin almost laughed out loud. "What?"  
  
"What's between you and my brother?" Nikki repeated.   
  
"Nothing much. He's just a friend." She replied. It was sort of true.   
  
"Oh." Nikki stared at the ground.   
  
"Is something wrong?" Meilin asked, watching the young girl. Nikki didn't respond, but walked off towards her room. Meilin followed her, thinking. "She reminds me of Arena... except younger."   
  
They reached Nikki's room and Nikki opened the door slowly. She glanced behind her at Meilin, beckoning for her to follow.   
  
******  
  
"You're mum's gonna flip." James told Sirius.  
  
"No duh." Sirius looked miserable.   
  
"Do you think you can sneak Meilin around so your mum won't know?"  
  
"There's no way. She'll find out. She's everywhere."  
  
"I'm so glad I'm not you." Sirius glared at him.  
  
"Hey! I have an idea. Get your dad to like her, so your mum won't be so hard on you two."  
  
"Might work." Sirius looked at his watch. 15 minutes was almost up. "We just have to keep Sylvia away."  
  
"That would be pretty hard. She's like a magnet. Wherever you are, she is eventually."  
  
*******  
  
When Nikki opened the door, a little black poodle bound out, yapping. He began to growl, and Nikki pushed him away. "Stop it, Gras."  
  
"Is there something you wanted to show me?" Meilin asked, very aware she was running late. Nikki shook her head.  
  
"I wanted to talk." She said quietly.   
  
"Nikki, I'll be back later- if you still want to talk. I'm supposed to meet Sirius." Meilin watched Nikki, unaware of her next move.  
  
"Fine." Nikki said in the same tone of voice. It reminded Meilin of a vampire- one exactly the opposite of Stephanie. Meilin left, Gras following at her heels. She ran down the stairs, and almost straight into Mr. Black.   
  
"I'm so sorry!" She apologized, bowing deeply.   
  
"Sylvia?" He asked, looking at her funny.  
  
"What? No, I'm-"  
  
"Meilin, what took you so long?" Sirius asked, appearing a few steps below them.  
  
"Your sister wanted to talk to me about something." She said, taking her attention off Mr. Black.  
  
"I see you've met my Dad."  
  
"Well, I didn't plan to meet this way, by running into him, I mean." Meilin laughed.  
  
"And who is this young lady?" Mr. Black asked. He looked a lot like Sirius, except he didn't have Sirius's dark eyes. He looked very nice.   
  
"My name is Meilin Hioko Serene. I am very pleased to meet you, and very sorry I ran into you." Most of her sisters called her a people pleaser and stuck up for that reason- she was polite. Except when mad. Then you'd better watch out.  
  
"One of the famous Japanese Serenes?" He asked in amazement. Meilin nodded.   
  
"Sort of. I was disowned." He didn't say anything, but you could tell he felt sorry for her.  
  
"It must be tough, being so far away from your hometown." He said after a minute.  
  
"Yes, it is, sometimes. But I'm perfectly happy at Hogwarts with my friends."  
  
"I'm glad to hear it. Are you staying for a while?"   
  
"I plan to stay for a week, if it's alright. If not, I'll leave."  
  
"Of course not! You can stay as long as you want." He smiled.   
  
"Domo arigatou, sir." He nodded, then turned to Sirius.   
  
"Have you shown Miss Serene her room?" He asked. Sirius nodded. "Oh, Sirius, would you tell Sylvia they need help in the kitchens? Now we can see if she's as good a cook as she says." Sylvia always bragged about being a cooking school graduate. You could tell she was lying. She may live in France, but she didn't even now the first thing about cooking.   
  
"Cooking?" Meilin asked.  
  
"Yes." Mr. Black said, watching her.   
  
"I love cooking. May I?"  
  
"Nonsense, your our guest. You should relax and let our cooks do all the work for you. Oh, Is James here?"   
  
"Yes." Sirius said. "He went to go talk to Sylvia."   
  
"Well, tell him I said 'hello'. I'll see you both at dinner." He walked up the steps, and Sirius led Meilin towards the lounge.  
  
"That was the easy part." He muttered.   
  
"Your father is very nice." Meilin said after a minute.   
  
"Are you fluent in English?" Sirius asked suddenly.  
  
"What? Why do you want to know that?" It was a rather strange question.   
  
"Are you?" It meant a lot if she was.   
  
"No, not really. I don't know that much of the language. I didn't get sent to school to learn English like my brothers and sisters. I mostly have Shampoo help translate."  
  
Oh great. Sirius thought. If his mother didn't like her, and he had a feeling she wouldn't, she would talk in the most complicated english just to confuse her. Sometimes he couldn't understand her either. When they got to the frosted glass French doors leading into the lounge, James was sitting by the door.   
  
"'Lo." He said, watching them. "Did it work?"  
  
"Dad likes her." Sirius said. "Dunno about mum."  
  
"She's in there. So are Sylvia and Mrs. Sheaton." He looked grim. "That little brat."   
  
Better now or never. Sirius thought. He knocked lightly on the door. He could hear female laughter in the other room.   
  
"Come in." Mrs. Black's voice called from amidst the laughter. Sirius opened the door slowly.   
  
"Mum?" He asked.  
  
"Oh, Sirius! Sit down, join us!" Mrs. Black laughed airily about something Mrs. Sheaton had said. Meilin, who was standing behind Sirius, looked around at the huge room. It was the size of the room she had in Adieu, with the walls and ceiling painted a soft green. Plants were everywhere, hanging from the ceiling, and sitting in pots. Meilin even noticed oriental bamboo- Shampoo's favorite. On the other side of the room was another set of French doors, leading out into the yard and garden. It was beautiful.  
  
"Mum, I'd like you to meet a friend of mine from school." He said after a moment.  
  
"Oh?" She asked, putting down her tea.   
  
"This is Meilin." He said, introducing them. "Meilin, this is my mum."   
  
"I am very pleased to meet you." Meilin said, smiling. Mrs. Black did not smile back.  
  
"Charmed, I'm sure." She said, in a bitter tone.  
  
"And that's Mrs. Sheaton. You've already met Sylvia." Sirius added.  
  
"Hello to you, too." She flashed Mrs. Sheaton a smile also. Unlike Mrs. Black, she smiled back.   
  
"Good morning. Tea?" She offered.   
  
"No, thank you." Meilin replied.   
  
"Would you like to sit down?" Mrs. Black gestured towards a chair, still using the same icy tone.   
  
Now I know where Nikki gets it. Meilin thought, sitting down.   
  
"What's your name again?" Mrs. Black asked.  
  
"Meilin Hioko Serene."   
  
"Oh, one of those rich Japanese Serenes, am I right?" There was no friendliness in her voice. It was pure ice.   
  
"Yes, ma'am."  
  
"Tell me, what house are you in?"   
  
"Ravenclaw."  
  
"Oh, Ravenclaw is a nice house." Mrs. Sheaton cut in. "I had the fortune of being in there myself. Do you like it there, Miss Serene?"  
  
"Meilin, please. Yes, I enjoy it a lot." She liked Mrs. Sheaton. She was nice.   
  
"Ah well, Meilin, I'm glad to hear it. My Sylvia goes to Beauxbatons in Europe." She said proudly. Mrs. Black cleared her throat, annoyed.  
  
"Ravenclaw, is it? Then you're not really a Serene, are you?" She said, glaring at Meilin.  
  
"Well, no." Meilin admitted. Most people wouldn't consider her one, but she did. She was daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Serene, like it or not.   
  
"Come along now, Kathrine. I'll see you at dinner, Sirius." She left, followed by Mrs. Sheaton.  
  
"I don't see why mummy likes you. You're a snobby brat." Sylvia scoffed.  
  
"Shut up, Sylvia. Oh, by the way, dad says you have to go help in the kitchens." He grinned as a look of horror spread across her face. She left quickly.   
  
"Thanks." Meilin smiled.   
  
"No prob." 


	24. Illegal Dismounts

Ok, Copyright... Well, the songs I borrowed belong to the original owners and the Bring It   
On soundtrack, The Josie and The Pussycats soundtrack, the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer Soundtrack, and Blessid Union of Souls cd, any others who I borrow songs from.. and the songs Can't Fight the Moonlight and I Do Love You. The charicters mostly belong to J.K Rowling. A few belong to myself. The names belong to whoever created them. The quotes I borrowed from TV belong to their original writers/qouters whatever!!  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay people, this is (as you can tell) about the Marauders. This takes place in their sixth and seventh years. There is a traitor in the midst of the Marauders, but who is it? This will take some abrupt turns later on, and the traitor isn't who you would expect. It will get better later, I promise!!! This is my first attempt at writing a Harry Potter fanfic, so cut me some slack. I am more well known for my Tenchi Muyo fanfics . . . Anyway, this is a four part story, so please enjoy!!!   
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Sorry it took so long for me to post this! I've been checking out a real "haunted" house with my friend, Sara. Too bad it's been knocked down... I'm going back tommorrow and checking it out more. After all, I want to check it out because it has something to do with the end of this story, along with the graveyard that's in our neighborhood from the 1850's (Around Blair Witch time for you horror movie buffs). I'm trying to become a more experienced and better writer by actually having seen my setting. It will help me make the ending A LOT better!!  
  
Chapter 24: Illegal Dismounts  
  
Meilin climbed up the stairs to her room, tormented. Passing Nikki's room, she heard loud music coming from the record player Nikki owned. She stopped to listen, and as she got closer, another voice was singing with it.   
  
"Not half bad," Meilin said. Suddenly the door opened, and Meilin jumped back. "Oh, hello Nikki."  
  
Nikki stared at Meilin, wondering what to do. "Come on." She finally muttered. She looked around for Gras, who bounded in front of Meilin.   
  
******  
  
Skuld hovered around towards the ceiling of Gryffindor tower, invisible. She watched a few of Meilin's brothers and sisters (her future aunts and uncles) walk around aimlessly. Life was very boring indeed for her that day.   
  
"What to do, what to do?..." She muttered, walking around aimlessly. If Arena was here... But Arena was here! Ha! Fun... She floated out of the portrait hole, saying a winded "Sayanora" to the Fat Lady, and went off towards McGonagall's office. No doubt Arena would be there.  
  
******  
  
"Aurora?" McGonagall called out to her daughter, who was gazing longingly out the window.  
  
"La, La, La," Aurora replied, ignoring her.  
  
"Arena," McGonagall muttered, almost losing her temper. Arena would never allow anyone to call her by her real name, Aurora.   
  
"What?" Arena snapped, never taking her eyes of the lake outside.   
  
"Arena, honestly, if you don't lose this attitude I will send you back to your father."   
  
"You wouldn't." Arena hissed, feeling her blood boil.  
  
"No, of course I wouldn't," McGonagall said slowly. "It's just that lately, you've been so distant and had such an attitude, it's like you're not happy with anything. Do you want to talk about something?"  
  
"No." If only you knew... Arena thought. If only you knew....  
  
******  
  
"Nice to see you, too," Shampoo said, sounding hurt.   
  
"I didn't mean it like that, just what are you doing here?" Remus asked.  
  
"I came to visit you, if that's okay."  
  
"Oh God I am so dead... What if my parents found out? They'd think I snuck you in! It's not exactly good to have my parents think I snuck a girl in my room, I mean come on... You have no idea what they'd think..." Shampoo jumped off the bed and walked out the open window to the roof below.  
  
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Remus called after her. "Shampoo!"  
  
She turned and looked at him, a serious expression on her face. "Do you trust me?"  
  
"What? This isn't about trust... Come back, Shampoo! You'll hurt yourself!"  
  
"How can I? Cats have great balance. And if I do fall, cats always land on their feet."  
  
"You're not a cat! You're an animangi! Big difference! And a stubborn one, at that!"  
  
"Do you trust me?"  
  
"In all honesty?"  
  
"In all honesty."  
  
"No."  
  
She sighed and glared at him. "C'mere."  
  
"Are you crazy?! I'm not going to walk on my roof! You've got to be joking!"  
  
"I'm not. Come here!"  
  
"I'm not going to climb out my window, onto the roof."  
  
"Trust me. I won't let you fall."  
  
"It's not falling I'm worried about."  
  
"What then? Heights? You're barely five feet off the ground. And if that bugs you, then don't look down."  
  
"Forget it, okay? I'm not coming."  
  
She looked at him for a moment and shrugged. "Fine." She turned back into a cat and jumped off the roof, calling, "I'll be up in a moment. I prefer the long way around."  
  
******  
  
Narcissa streached out, her feet on the headrest of the seat in front of her. The plane had just taken off, and Lily was asleep next to her, a sweet smile on her face.   
  
"Lil?"  
  
"Yeah?" Lily replied sleepily.  
  
"Do you ever wonder what we'd be doing ten years from now?"  
  
"No. I already know."  
  
"Really? What?"  
  
"I'll be at my own funeral. You'll have killed me bungee jumping."  
  
Narcissa smiled and playfully hit Lily. "No, really."  
  
Lily studied her for a moment with a crystal-like gaze. "I imagine by then I'll have married James, and probably have had a child."  
  
"Nah, that won't happen with me around!"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because by then, we'll be spray-painting our getaway vehicle!"  
  
"I'm afraid to ask- why?"  
  
"We'll have robbed Gringotts!!!!"  
  
Lily laughed. "Narce, you're weird. What about you?"  
  
"I dunno. I live for the moment."  
  
"Ain't that the truth?"  
  
"Hey, be nice!" She faked a pout. "Or I'll cry."  
  
"Yeah right!"  
  
******  
  
"Meilin!!!" James called from downstairs. Meilin looked at Nikki, who appeared annoyed.   
  
"Go. We'll talk after dinner." She hissed.  
  
"Yeah," Meilin agreed, going back to the stairs. "What, James?"  
  
"I want you to show me something!" He called back.  
  
"What?"  
  
"What in the world is an 'illegal dismount'?"  
  
"Why do you want to know?" She called, frustrated. 'Does it ever end?'  
  
"Lily said something about it... Oh, just come here!"  
  
She descended the steps and went up to him. "Yes?"  
  
"See?" He showed her Lily's letter, which indeed said something about an illegal dismount.  
  
"Baka..." She muttered under her breath. Why was he keeping letters that were three months old, anyway? "James, this is three months old."  
  
"I know."  
  
"Then why are you keeping it?"  
  
"That's none of your business. Now answer my question."  
  
"What? You want me to show you?" She sighed. "I can't do that. I have to have other people. Cheerleaders." She added, when she saw the look he was giving her. "Who know what they're doing. And since when do you care what an 'illegal dismount' is?"  
  
"I don't."  
  
"THEN WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME?!?!?"  
  
"Sorry... Just curious."  
  
"You make no sense at all. Why didn't you just ask Lily?"  
  
"Because you're the captain, for one reason or another, right?"  
  
"Yeah, because I know what I'm doing. Now if you don't mind- I would like to get back to my experiment."  
  
"Hello, all." Sirius said as he joined then. He faked a gasp. "James! How could you! Trying to take my girl behind my back!"  
  
"Oh knock it off." Meilin muttered, storming back upstairs.  
  
"Cheerleaders." James shook his head.  
  
"What did you do now?"  
  
"Umm... I asked her what an illegal dismount was."  
  
"James, there's your mistake right there. You never ask a cheerleader what their moves are. You're supposed to act like you know all about their sport. It makes them think they're important. That way, their happy and perky so they can cheer on the crappy teams like Hufflepuff and Slytherin. At least then, you can say you're on that team's side for their girls."   
  
"Uh-huh."  
  
"You want to know what Narcissa would say if she heard you?" Meilin's voice drifted from upstairs.  
  
"No." They both chimed.  
  
"She'd say she'd kill you."  
  
******   
  
"Green sticky stuff..." Skuld checked her bag for her interesting new experiment. "Check." She put her pack on and went to the door. "Time to go."  
  
"What are you doing?" Arena's voice sounded from behind her, making her jump.  
  
"Don't do that! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"  
  
"Oh boo hoo. Now, what are you doing?"  
  
"I was going to find you. What else?"  
  
"Since when do you look for me?"  
  
"Whenever I want to. Got a problem with that?"  
  
"Maybe I do."  
  
"You would."  
  
******  
  
Narcissa awoke to Lily banging her with a lunch tray. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?!?!" She demanded.  
  
"Finally you're awake! We had to make an emergency landing."  
  
"Really? That's nice. Where?"  
  
"How am I supposed to know?"  
  
"You're the smart one, figure it out."  
  
"Dad went to see what's going on."  
  
"Am I dead yet?"  
  
"No, unfortunatly not. You're no help!"  
  
"Thank you, and good night."  
  
"Narce, get up! Can't you see this is a life and death situation?"  
  
"Yes, If I don't go back to sleep, you'll wish you were dead. However, if I do go back to bed, you'll live."  
  
"THAT'S NOT EVEN FUNNY!!!" She pulled Narcissa's pillow out from under her and threw it at her."GET UP!!!!"  
  
"No!"  
  
"I give up." Lily sat back down and played with her hair nervously, then got up and left. A few minutes later, she came back grumbling.  
  
"What now?" Narcissa murmered, her eyes closed.  
  
"Some emergency landing! You know what the emergency was?"  
  
"No, but I have a feeling you're going to tell me."  
  
"The stupid fat pilot wanted a hamburger, for goodness sake!"  
  
Narcissa burst out laughing, receiving the evil eye from Lily. "Sorry, Lil, but that's just funny. Oh, before I forget, why didn't Petunia come?"  
  
"She's with one of her friends in France."  
  
"Figures. That's your sister for you."  
  
"Yes."  
  
******  
  
Meilin looked at the clock. Five minutes until dinner. "Five minutes until I die." Meilin reminded herself. "Why does that woman hate me, anyway?" A knock on the door made her jump. "Come in!" She called.  
  
"We meet again." Sirius grinned.   
  
"Can I help you?"  
  
"I came to tell you dinner is served."  
  
"Thanks. I'll be down in a minute. Now where did it go?" She continued digging in her trunk for the rest of her makeup. Finally she found what she was looking for and pulled it out. "Oh I love this perfume! Okay, I'm ready now." She followed Sirius to the dining room, where everyone else already was. James cast her a devilish grin, and she smiled. She sat down next to Sirius, and received evil glares from Sylvia, Nikki, and Mrs. Black.  
  
"So, Meilin, do you play any sports?" Mr. Black asked, quite aware of the akward silence around the table.  
  
"Yes; I am a cheerleader." She replied.  
  
"That's nice," he said in an empty tone.  
  
'Please let it end...' Meilin thought. 'Put me out of my misery.' 


End file.
